Elise Labott of CNN, in Lima, Peru with Secretary Clinton just reported that Hillary Clinton, in an interview there, has assumed full responsibility for the raid in Benghazi that killed the U.S. Ambassador and three others. According to Labott, Mme. Secretary said, buck stops with me.”
Clinton: ‘I take responsibility’ for security ahead of Benghazi attack
From Elise Labott, CNNupdated 8:08 PM EDT, Mon October 15, 2012Vodpod videos no longer available.Lima, Peru (CNN) — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the buck stops with her when it comes to who is to blame for security ahead of a deadly assault on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.
“I take responsibility” for what happened on September 11, Clinton said in an interview with CNN’s Elise Labott soon after arriving in Lima, Peru, for a visit. The interview, one of a series given to U.S. television networks Monday night, was the first she has given about the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi.
Clinton insisted President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden are not involved in security decisions.
AP’s Matt Lee, also traveling with the Secretary, filed this report.
Clinton in Peru amid questions about Libya
By MATTHEW LEE | Associated Press
LIMA, Peru (AP) — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday embarked on her first overseas trip since last month’s deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya, traveling to Peru for a conference on women’s empowerment amid the lingering political drama in Washington over the Obama administration’s handling of the incident.
Clinton arrived for the long-planned women’s event in Lima after another weekend of criticism from Republicans over the Obama administration’s initial explanation of the Sept. 11 attack and security at the consulate in Benghazi, where the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans died.
Her arrival coincided with a call from the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., for Clinton to answer more questions about what was known about the security situation in Libya in the period leading up to the attack as well as the State Department’s priorities on paying for and protecting diplomatic missions abroad.
i’m actually relieved she said that. hillary always takes responsibility. technically, obama should because he’s her boss, but we all knew that would never happen. so we’ll just let the chips fall where they may. i don’t think this is a case of the WH making hillary fall on her sword. she’s doing what she believes is right. the next several weeks won’t be easy for her, but she’ll pull through.
LikeLike
I agree. Hillary has integrity. This is what she does.
LikeLike
actually, the last several weeks have been very hard for her, too.
diplomats are under the state department’s aegis, so it’s not as if she’s covering for someone else. but the response of the WH, trying to act as if obama were in another universe when this happened, creates a pretty vivid contrast, doesn’t it?
LikeLike
I’m of a different mind, and Iknow think president Obama is a man child.
LikeLike
just read an interview with stevens’ father, who is tired of the attack being politicized by the GOP and romney.
LikeLike
HUGS to Hillary.
LikeLike
she looked very sad when she and Pres.Obama stood by as the remains came in from Libya a few weeks ago and later when she spoke. i just wanted to reach out and hug her. feeling the same now…
LikeLike
I wonder if she will resign over this. I’m sure we’ll hear tons of calls for it.
LikeLike
She isn’t a quitter. Obviously she takes her job very seriously/
LikeLike
i’m not so sure. so few politicians take responsibility, that hillary already stands out in this regard.
LikeLike
the point has never been for someone to resign. it’s to drag this out as long as possible and hurt obama in the election. hillary accepting responsibility just puts the focus back on the WH’s poor handling of this.
LikeLike
I don’t know. The Republicans that I’ve heard talk about her spoke highly of Hillary (Peter King, McCain, Lindsey Graham,etc.). Peter King said that Hillary was a straight shooter and very well respected in Congress by members of both parties.
LikeLike
which is why GOP senators released a statement today saying the buck should stop with obama because he’s the commander in chief.
LikeLike
I trust that Hillary feels that taking responsibility for this is the right and responsible thing to do. Her actions confirm her courage, and in this demonstration of courage and honor, she stands in sharp contrast to her boss.
My how things have changed since Truman’s day, when the buck stopped with the president.
LikeLike
Really really changed. So now tomorrow in the debate Obama gets to say hey look Hillary is looking into it and she said it was her responsiblity.
LikeLike
… and it will look sooooooo wimpy! (Also will give Romney the chance to say he would never let his SOS take blame under his administration. Hillary is a genius.)
LikeLike
The queen just checked the media’s king
LikeLike
I was thinking exactly the same thing. Certainly George Marshall, whom Hillary greatly admires, and Dean Acheson were big enough men to have done what Hillary just did, but Truman would never have let that stand. Never. He would have taken responsibility
For those who think she fell on her sword, She did not . She picked it up and lifted it over her head. She is going to get to the bottom of this. She has said so. It may appear to some that she has fallen on her sword, but that’s only because we see so rarely (except in her case) what she is exhibiting: real leadership.
LikeLike
i agree with you completely. this is very high integrity leadership on her part. mark of a leader of the highest caliber.
LikeLike
Not sure how this is gonna play out , but the hash tag #hillaryalsotooktheblame for is trending word wide.
LikeLike
i agree totally.
LikeLike
Looks like the WSJ held on to this story for a few days, trying to make it look like something it wasn’t she took responsiblity for it a while ago. The media is corrupt.
LikeLike
Agreed 100%, Still. I see this as a “win/win” for HRC. She’s showing what true leadership looks like, and she’s also doing what’s right for the country. (I think she’d put the latter before the former.) It’s really a shame that she is not our President right now, but in doing what she’s done, she’s certainly setting herself up for an easier time in ’16 should she choose to run again. (Please let it be so! I’ll work wholeheartedly on her behalf if she does. And proudly, too.)
LikeLike
It will come up at the debate. Lets see how Obama handles this.
LikeLike
This appeared rehearsed, and I did not like it. The only person suggesting she “played politics” was Obama. Romney did not mention her name.
LikeLike
I’m worried about Hillary. I hope that she comes out well out of this mess. There’s so much polarization in politics nowadays. I also don’t trust Obama at all. He better not be planning to throw her under the bus. Hillary is not alone, plenty of us have her back.
LikeLike
if he tries it, everyone will call him on it because they’ll know exactly what he’s doing.
LikeLike
If the Obama Administration tries throwing Mrs. Clinton, the Sec. of State, under the bus, she’ll build a hotel and start charging rent. 😉 Because there’s a whole lot of people under that bus already, but once HRC is there, things are going to change. (Or as the old folk song used to have it, “Change is gonna come.”)
LikeLike
[…] So he is speculating! Never mind that she accepted full responsibility for failures, provided State Department personnel to testify and documents for examination as […]
LikeLike
[…] let us not forget that Hillary Clinton took full responsibility for incidents in Benghazi with no reservations. She has been entirely forthcoming and […]
LikeLike