Next, Obama also claimed "tens of thousands of Libyans after the events in Benghazi marching and saying America is our friend". Where was help from the Libyan authorities or the Embassy in Tripoli, any police or military in Libya? The embassy in Tripoli launched an aircraft carrying 22 men, just what did they do when they arrived?
Here's where a Senior State Department Official tells us that calls went out "the very beginning of this incident". Obama didn't give any details when he claimed "I immediately made sure that, number one, that we did everything we could to secure those Americans who were still in harm's way". That's where the question should have a better answer. What are the orders that where given? Who got the orders? How were those orders carried out?
Background Conference Call With Senior State Department Officials
October 9, 2012
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2012/10/198791.htm
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL:“...I neglected to mention from the top that that agent from the top of this incident, or the very beginning of this incident, has been on the phone. He had called the quick reaction security team, he had called the Libyan authorities, he had called the Embassy in Tripoli, and he had called Washington. He had them all going to ask for help.”
Next, more on the timeline of the agent’s call for help at "the very beginning", that went to Washington, the Libyan authorities, and the Embassy in Tripoli.
First, Aid the Living
October 21, 2012
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/331125/first-aid-living-bing-west
On September 11, at about 10 p.m. Libyan time (4 p.m. in Washington), Ambassador Chris Stevens and a small staff were inside our consulate in Benghazi when terrorists attacked. The consulate staff immediately contacted Washington and our embassy in Tripoli. The White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, and numerous military headquarters monitored the entire battle in real time via the phone calls from Benghazi and video from a drone overhead.
Our diplomats fought for seven hours without any aid from outside the country...
By 4:30 p.m. Washington time, the main consulate building was on fire and Ambassador Stevens was missing. In response, the embassy in Tripoli launched an aircraft carrying 22 men. Benghazi was 400 miles away.
At 5 p.m., President Obama met with Vice President Biden and Secretary of Defense Panetta in the Oval Office. The U.S. military base in Sigonella, Sicily, was 480 miles away from Benghazi. Stationed at Sigonella were Special Operations Forces, transport aircraft, and attack aircraft — a much more formidable force than 22 men from the embassy.
In the past, presidents had taken immediate actions to protect Americans. In 1984, President Reagan had ordered U.S. pilots to force an airliner carrying terrorists to land at Sigonella. Reagan had acted inside a 90-minute window while the aircraft with the terrorists was in the air. The Obama national-security team had several hours in which to move forces from Sigonella to Benghazi.
Fighter jets could have been at Benghazi in an hour; the commandos inside three hours. If the attackers were a mob, as intelligence reported, then an F18 in afterburner, roaring like a lion, would unnerve them. This procedure was applied often in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Conversely, if the attackers were terrorists, then the U.S. commandos would eliminate them. But no forces were dispatched from Sigonella.
Obama also claimed "tens of thousands of Libyans after the events in Benghazi marching and saying America is our friend"
IMO, the question from the moderator was to general for Romney to be specific on Libya. The question asked to Romney was ‘How is Obama’s Middle East policy unraveling?’
Of course Romney could have answered more specifically without divulging classified information that he has been given. He chose to avoid it with a 10-mile pole for fear of how the media could use whatever he said against himself.
Insofar as he gave his opposition (Obama, Democrats and the MSM) absolutely zero that could be used against him, he succeeded.
Yes, it’s infuriating. Yes, he’ll have to be watched and goaded constantly as president not to capitulate to the Dems and call it all his idea.
I know, I was in the GOP in MA when he was guv. We saw it in the last debate as well, when he tried to outflank Obama on the left on immigration by promising ‘comprehensive immigration reform’ in his first year as president.
But that’ll still be a better problem to have than a second Obama term.
I think Romney called his bluff. Obama probably spent most of his debate prep rehearsing lies to distort the what really happened in libya and re-write the narrative. Romney didn’t give him a chance to use it. Romney will get him in TV Ads - probably starting today.
TRANSCRIPT: Presidential debate on foreign policy at Lynn University
October 22, 2012
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/10/22/transcript-presidential-debate-on-foreign-policy-at-lynn-university/