Conjecture using Occam’s Razor:
POTUS became a Hitleresque maniacal tyrant in the Situation Room, acting to kill 4 friendlies including an Ambassador, 4 star equivalent, and relieving another 4 star, when all had been told to ‘Stand down’, until he decided what to do, even though he wasn’t deciding.
All the others are simply responding in as professional method using their skill sets as they are able in face of such a maniacal authority, trying to manifest to him, their submission to his authority within their own volition.
Simplest solution is that there is only one madman involved. Until he is out of power, they might not consider it wise to act.
Remember, all of this went down before 10pm in DC and the ambassador’s body was found by midnight in DC, and being flown out by 0230 DC time. If he has a history of getting coked up, and he felt slighted by the actions of others in the binLaden situation, I suspect he reacted the same way he behaved in the 3rd debate in response to the 1st debate.
Look at his glare and commanding presence in the 3rd debate, and translate that to a situation room where he felt being adversarial was his forte amongst those requesting immediate action which he had been unprepared to comprehend.
This seems more plausible to me than 20 or so others providing their outlandish statements and coverups. Either it is conspiracy or they are responding to the situation unknown to all of us.
I can buy most of that as a plausible scenario, it still leads to the litmus question, yes or no, about granting or not granting CBA. “Standing down” etc are weasel words used by obfuscators.
Cross-border authority: yes or no, Mr. President? Did you grant it? When? To whom? I’m pretty sure they’d remember the moment very, very well.
Not sure about your timeline. When is the verified hour/minute in Behghazi when Ambassador Stevens’ remains were postitively back in U.S. hands?
That is critical. Did Obama go to bed while his ambassador was still missing, and presumed in the hands of AQ, prepping for his Danny Pearl star turn?
My understanding had been that it was broad daylight, well into morning, when the ambassador’s remains were positively back in U.S. hands.
Knowing the moment is not trivial. Did Obama go to bed with an ambassador MIA in AQ contry? A four-star-genearl of diplomats, our point man in North Africa? Obama’s own “Lawrence of Libya?”
“Somebody said they got a phone call said he was found” does not constitute the time the ambassador was back in U.S. custody, as the Obamite defenders might try as an obfuscation. He’s missing until he is known to be back in U.S. hands.
What time did Obama go to bed?
What time did we have the ambassador back?