Benghazi | Still4Hill

Posts Tagged ‘Benghazi’

The Tea Party v. Hillary Clinton: It Never Ends

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, Tea Party, Uncategorized, tagged Benghazi, Darryl Issa, FOX News, House Republican Conference, Jason Chaffetz, Libya, Megyn Kelly, Tea Party on April 24, 2013| 33 Comments »

Resoundingly missing from the cover of the Interim Progress Report on the Benghazi, Libya consulate attack published yesterday by the House Republican Conference is the name Harold Rogers (R-KY), chairman of the House Appropriations committee that twice slashed the State Department’s diplomatic security budget. That committee was apparently excused from reporting to the conference in the zealous crusade being waged by Tea Party Republicans, led by Darryl Issa and Jason Chaffetz, to pin blame on then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Issa’s name is listed as a co-author of the report while Media Matters reports that Chaffetz appeared with Megyn Kelly to discuss the report released to great hullabaloo in right-wing circles.

Fox’s Kelly Interviews Rep. Chaffetz And Ignores His Hypocrisy Over Embassy Security

ANDREW LAWRENCE

During the interview there was no mention of Rep. Chaffetz’s own vote to cut funding to embassy security or reports that have undermined right-wing attacks on Clinton.

SNIP

Kelly provided Chaffetz with numerous opportunities to bash Clinton – asking if Clinton “blatantly lied” over requests being made for more security at the embassy, allowing Chaffetz to make claims that Clinton personally denied more security for the embassy, and speculating that there are documents being hidden from lawmakers that prove Clinton had direct knowledge regarding the lack of security at the embassy.

Read more >>>>

Oh! So he is speculating! Never mind that she accepted full responsibility for failures, provided State Department personnel to testify and documents for examination as requested, submitted the Accountability Review Board report in a timely fashion from home while recovering from a concussion and blood clot, and went on to testify in person before committees in both the Senate and the House as requested before she had fully recovered from her serious (and scary) health issues – never mind all of that. Chaffetz and his Tea Partiers think documents are being hidden. According to an article yesterday inThe Hill, the former secretary was not interviewed by the audit committee.

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Fox News Poll: Benghazi Hearings Did Not Put The Brakes On The Hillary Clinton Steamroller

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, tagged Benghazi, FOX News, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Quinnipiac poll on February 12, 2013| 18 Comments »

A regular visitor here thought you all might be interested in seeing this Fox News poll taken after (February 4 – 6) the Quinnipiac poll posted here last week, and after she stepped down from her post. The poll compares her favorability ratings before and after her Benghazi testimonies on Capitol Hill. The numbers speak for themselves.

Hillary rising: Benghazi hearing doesn’t slow Clinton’s roll

Posted by Scott Clement on February 8, 2013

Two weeks after Hillary Clinton faced fierce criticism over last year’s attack on a U.S. diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, a Fox News poll finds her image untarnished with nearly two-thirds of voters approving of her work as secretary of state.

By 64 to 29 percent more registered voters approve than disapprove of Clinton’s performance, a five-point uptick in Fox News ratings from December that are now closer to her standing in Washington Post-ABC News and CNN/ORC polls from late last year.

Read more >>>>

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Video: Hillary Clinton Before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Benghazi

Posted in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. House of Representatives, tagged Benghazi, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. House of Representatives on January 23, 2013| 29 Comments »

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Full testimony from C-SPAN.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

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Terrorist Attack in Benghazi: The Secretary of State’s View

Testimony

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State

Opening Remarks Before the House Foreign Affairs Committee

Washington, DC

January 23, 2013

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and I thank you and the Ranking Member and members of the committee, both of longstanding tenure and brand new members, and I appreciate your patience for me to be able to come to fulfill my commitment to you, actually to the former chairwoman, that I would be here to discuss the attack in Benghazi. I appreciate this opportunity. I will submit my full testimony for the record. I want to make just a few points.First, the terrorist attacks in Benghazi that claimed the lives of four brave Americans – Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty – are part of a broader strategic challenge to the United States and our partners in North Africa. I think it’s important we understand the context for this challenge as we work together to protect our people and honor our fallen colleagues.

Any clear-eyed examination of this matter must begin with this sobering fact: Since 1988, there have been 19 Accountability Review Boards investigating attacks on American diplomats and their facilities. Since 1977, 65 American diplomatic personnel have been killed by terrorists. In addition to those who have been killed, we know what happened in Tehran with hostages being taken in 1979, our Embassy and Marine barracks bombed in Beirut in 1983, Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996, our embassies in East Africa in 1998, consulate staff murdered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 2004, the Khost attack in Afghanistan in 2009, and too many others.

But I also want to stress the list of attacks that were foiled, crises averted, and lives saved is even longer. We should never forget that the security professionals get it right more than 99 percent of the time, against difficult odds, because the terrorists only need to get it right once. That’s why, like all my predecessors, I trust the Diplomatic Security professionals with my life.

Let’s also remember that, as the Chairman and the Ranking Member pointed out, administrations of both parties, in partnership with Congress, have made concerted and good faith efforts to learn from the tragedies that have occurred, to implement recommendations from the Review Boards, to seek the necessary resources to better protect our people in a constantly evolving threat environment.

In fact, Mr. Chairman, of the 19 Accountability Review Boards that have been held since 1988, only two have been made public. I want to stress that because the two that have been made public, coming out of the East Africa Embassy bombings and this one, are attempts, honest attempts by the State Department, by the Secretary – Secretary Albright and myself – to be as transparent and open as possible. We wanted to be sure that whatever these independent, nonpartisan boards found would be made available to the Congress and to the American people, because, as I have said many times since September 11^th, I take responsibility, and nobody is more committed to getting this right. I am determined to leave the State Department and our country safer, stronger, and more secure.

Now, taking responsibility meant not only moving quickly in those first uncertain hours and days to respond to the immediate crisis, but also to make sure we were protecting our people and posts in high-threat areas across the region and the world. It also meant launching an independent investigation to determine exactly what happened in Benghazi and to recommend steps for improvement. And it also meant intensifying our efforts to combat terrorism and support emerging democracies in North Africa and beyond. Let me share briefly the lessons we have learned up until now.

First, let’s start on the night of September 11^th itself and those difficult early days. I directed our response from the State Department and stayed in close contact with officials from across our government and the Libyan Government. So I did see firsthand what Ambassador Pickering and Chairman Mullen called timely and exceptional coordination – no delays in decision making, no denials of support from Washington or from our military. And I want to echo the Review Board’s praise for the valor and courage of our people on the ground, especially our security professionals in Benghazi and Tripoli. The board said our response saved American lives in real time, and it did.

The very next morning, I told the American people, and I quote, “heavily armed militants assaulted our compound,” and vowed to bring them to justice. And I stood later that day with President Obama as he spoke of an act of terror.

Now you may recall, at this same time period, we were also seeing violent attacks on our embassies in Cairo, Sana’a, Tunis, and Khartoum, as well as large protests outside many other posts, from India to Indonesia, where thousands of our diplomats serve.

So I immediately ordered a review of our security posture around the world, with particular scrutiny for high-threat posts. And I asked the Department of Defense to join Interagency Security Assessment Teams and to dispatch hundreds of additional Marine Security Guards. I named the first Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for High Threat Posts so that missions in dangerous places get the attention they need. And we reached out to Congress to help address physical vulnerabilities, including risks from fire, and to hire additional Diplomatic Security Personnel and Marine Security Guards.

Second, even as I took these steps, I quickly moved to appoint the Accountability Review Board because I wanted them to come forward with their report before I left, because I felt the responsibility and I wanted to be sure that I was putting in motion the response to whatever they found; what was wrong, how do we fix it.

I have accepted every one of their recommendations. Our Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources, Deputy Tom Nides, who appeared before this committee last month, is leading a task force to ensure all 29 are implemented quickly and completely, as well as pursuing additional steps above and beyond the board.

I pledged in my letter to you last month that implementation has now begun on all 29 recommendations. We’ve translated them into 64 specific action items. They were all assigned to specific bureaus and offices with clear timelines for completion. Fully 85 percent are on track to be completed by the end of March, with a number completed already. But we are also taking a top-to-bottom look to rethink how we make decisions on where, when and whether our people should operate in high-threat areas, and how we respond.

We are initiating an annual High Threat Post Review chaired for the first time in American history, I suppose, by the Secretary of State, and ongoing reviews by the Deputy Secretaries, to ensure that pivotal questions about security reach the highest level. And we will regularize protocols for sharing information with Congress.

Now, in addition to the immediate action we took and the review board process, we’re moving on a third front: addressing the broader strategic challenge in North Africa and the wider region. Benghazi did not happen in a vacuum. The Arab revolutions have scrambled power dynamics and shattered security forces across the region. Instability in Mali has created an expanding safe haven for terrorists who look to extend their influence and plot further attacks of the kind we just saw last week in Algeria.

And let me offer our deepest condolences to the families of the Americans and all the people from many nations killed and injured in the Algerian hostage crisis. We remain in close touch with the Government of Algeria, ready to provide assistance if needed, and also seeking to gain a fuller understanding of what took place so we can work together to prevent such terrorist attacks in the future.

Now, concerns about terrorism and instability in North Africa are not new, of course. Indeed, they have been a top priority for this entire national security team. But we need to work together to accelerate a diplomatic campaign to increase pressure on al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and the other terrorist groups in the region.

I’ve conferred with the President of Libya, the Foreign Ministers and Prime Ministers of Tunisia and Morocco. Two weeks later, after the attack, I met with a very large group of regional leaders at the UN and was part of a special meeting focused on Mali and the Sahel. In October, I flew to Algeria to discuss the fight against AQIM. In November, I sent Deputy Secretary Bill Burns on an interagency group to Algiers to continue that conversation. And then in my stead, he co-chaired the Global Counterterrorism Forum that was held in Abu Dhabi and a meeting in Tunis working not only on building new democracies but reforming security services.

These are just a few of the constant diplomatic engagements that we are having focused on targeting al-Qaida’s syndicate of terror – closing safe havens, cutting off finances, countering their extremist ideology, slowing the flow of new recruits. We continue to hunt the terrorists responsible for the attacks in Benghazi and are determined to bring them to justice. And we are using our diplomatic and economic tools to support the emerging democracies, including Libya, in order to give them the strength to provide a path away from extremism.

But finally, the United States must continue to lead in the Middle East, in North Africa, and around the globe. We’ve come a long way in the past four years, and we cannot afford to retreat now. When America is absent, especially from unstable environments, there are consequences. Extremism takes root; our interests suffer; and our security at home is threatened.

That’s why Chris Stevens went to Benghazi in the first place. I asked him to go. During the beginning of the revolution against Qadhafi, we needed somebody in Benghazi who could begin to build bridges with the insurgents and to begin to demonstrate that America would stand against Qadhafi. Nobody knew the dangers or the opportunities better than Chris, first during the revolution, then during the transition. A weak Libyan Government, marauding militias, even terrorist groups; a bomb exploded in the parking lot of his hotel. He never wavered. He never asked to come home. He never said, “Let’s shut it down, quit, and go somewhere else.” Because he understood it was critical for America to be represented in that place at that pivotal time.

So Mr. Chairman, we do have to work harder and better to balance the risks and the opportunities. Our men and women who serve overseas understand that we do accept a level of risk to represent and protect the country we love. They represent the best traditions of a bold and generous nation. They cannot work in bunkers and do their jobs. But it is our responsibility to make sure they have the resources they need to do those jobs and to do everything we can to reduce the risks they face.

For me, this is not just a matter of policy. It’s personal, because I’ve had the great honor to lead the men and women of the State Department and USAID, nearly 70,000 serving here in Washington and at more than 275 posts around the world. They get up and go to work every day, often in difficult and dangerous circumstances thousands of miles from home, because they believe the United States is the most extraordinary force for peace and progress the earth has ever known.

And when we suffer tragedies overseas, the number of Americans applying to the Foreign Service actually increases. That tells us everything we need to know about the kind of patriots I’m talking about. They do ask what they can do for their country, and America is stronger for it.

So today, after four years in this job, traveling nearly a million miles and visiting 112 countries, my faith in our country and our future is stronger than ever. Every time that blue and white airplane carrying the words “United States of America” touches down in some far-off capital, I feel again the honor it is to represent the world’s indispensible nation. And I am confident that, with your help, we will continue to keep the United States safe, strong, and exceptional.

And now I would be very happy to answer your questions.

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Video: Hillary Clinton’s Testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Benghazi

Posted in Foreign Relations Committee, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Senate, tagged Benghazi, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, State Department on January 23, 2013| 22 Comments »

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Full testimony.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Testimony

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State

Opening Remarks Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Washington, DC

January 23, 2013

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, members of the committee, both older and new. I’m very grateful for this opportunity and I thank you very much for your patience to give me the chance to come and address these issues with you.

As both the Chairman and the Ranking Member have said, the terrorist attacks in Benghazi on September 11^th, 2012 that claimed the lives of four brave Americans – Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty – are part of a broader strategic challenge to the United States and our partners in North Africa. Today, I want briefly to offer some context for this challenge, share what we’ve learned, how we are protecting our people, and where we can work together to not only honor our fallen colleagues, but continue to champion America’s interests and values.

Any clear-eyed examination of this matter must begin with this sobering fact: Since 1988, there have been 19 Accountability Review Boards investigating attacks on American diplomats and their facilities. Benghazi joins a long list of tragedies for our Department, for other agencies, and for America: hostages taken in Tehran in 1979, our Embassy and Marine barracks bombed in Beirut in 1983, Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996, our embassies in East Africa in 1998, consulate staff murdered in Jeddah in 2004, the Khost attack in 2009, and too many others. Since 1977, 65 American diplomatic personnel have been killed by terrorists.

Now of course, the list of attacks foiled, crises averted, and lives saved is even longer. We should never forget that our security professionals get it right more than 99 percent of the time, against difficult odds all over the world. That’s why, like my predecessors, I literally trust them with my life.

Let’s also remember that administrations of both parties, in partnership with Congress, have made concerted and good faith efforts to learn from these attacks and deaths to implement recommendations from the review boards, to seek the necessary resources, and to do better in protecting our people from what has become constantly evolving threats. That is the least that the men and women who serve our country deserve. It’s what, again, we are doing now with your help. As Secretary, I have no higher priority and no greater responsibility.

As I have said many times, I take responsibility, and nobody is more committed to getting this right. I am determined to leave the State Department and our country safer, stronger, and more secure.

Now, taking responsibility meant moving quickly in those first uncertain hours and days to respond to the immediate crisis, but also to further protect our people and posts in high-threat areas across the region and the world. It meant launching an independent investigation to determine exactly what happened in Benghazi and to recommend steps for improvement. And it meant intensifying our efforts to combat terrorism and figure out effective ways to support the emerging democracies in North Africa and beyond.

Let me share some of the lessons we’ve learned, the steps we’ve taken, and the work we continue to do.

First, let’s start on the night of September 11^th itself and those difficult early days. I directed our response from the State Department, stayed in close contact with officials from across our government and the Libyan Government. So I saw firsthand what Ambassador Pickering and former Chairman Mike Mullen called timely and exceptional coordination; no delays in decision making, no denials of support from Washington or from our military. And I want to echo the Review Board’s praise for the valor and courage of our people on the ground, especially the security professionals in Benghazi and Tripoli. The board said the response saved American lives in real time, and it did.

The very next morning, I told the American people that heavily armed militants assaulted our compound, and I vowed to bring them to justice. And I stood with President Obama in the Rose Garden as he spoke of an act of terror.

It’s also important to recall that in that same period, we were seeing violent attacks on our embassies in Cairo, Sana’a, Tunis, Khartoum, as well as large protests outside many other posts where thousands of our diplomats serve. So I immediately ordered a review of our security posture around the world, with particular scrutiny for high-threat posts. I asked the Department of Defense to join Interagency Security Assessment Teams and to dispatch hundreds of additional Marine Security Guards. I named the first Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for High Threat Posts so missions in dangerous places get the attention they need. And we reached out to Congress to help address physical vulnerabilities, including risk from fire, and to hire additional Diplomatic Security personnel.

Second, even as we took these steps, I hurried to appoint the Accountability Review Board led by Ambassador Pickering and Admiral Mullen so we could more fully understand from objective, independent examination what went wrong and how to fix it.

I have accepted every one of their recommendations. I asked the Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources to lead a task force to ensure that all 29 of them are implemented quickly and completely, as well as pursuing additional steps above and beyond the recommendations.

I also pledged in my letter to you last month that implementation would begin, and it has. Our task force started by translating the recommendations into 64 specific action items. They were assigned to bureaus and offices with clear timelines for completion. Eighty-five percent are now on track to be completed by the end of March; a number are already completed. And we will use this opportunity to take a top-to-bottom look and rethink how we make decisions on where, when and whether people operate in high-threat areas, and then how we respond to threats and crises.

We are initiating an annual High Threat Post Review chaired by the Secretary of State, and ongoing reviews by the Deputy Secretaries, to ensure that pivotal questions about security do reach the highest levels. We will regularize protocols for sharing information with Congress. These are designed to increase the safety of our diplomats and development experts and reduce the chances of another Benghazi happening again.

We’ve also been moving forward on a third front: addressing the broader strategic challenge in North Africa and the wider region, because, after all, Benghazi did not happen in a vacuum. The Arab revolutions have scrambled power dynamics and shattered security forces across the region. Instability in Mali has created an expanding safe haven for terrorists who look to extend their influence and plot further attacks of the kind we saw just last week in Algeria.

And let me offer our deepest condolences to the families of the Americans and all the people from many nations who were killed and injured in that recent hostage crisis. We are in close touch with the Government of Algeria. We stand ready to provide assistance. We are seeking to gain a fuller understanding of what took place so we can work together with Algerians and others to prevent such terrorist attacks in the future.

Concerns about terrorism and instability in North Africa are of course not new. They have been a top priority for the entire Administration’s national security team. But we have been facing a rapidly changing threat environment, and we have had to keep working at ways to increase pressure on al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and the other terrorist groups in the region.

In the first hours and days, I conferred with leaders – the President of Libya, Foreign Ministers of Tunisia and Morocco – and then I had a series of meetings at the United Nations General Assembly where there was a special meeting focused on Mali and the Sahel. In October, I flew to Algeria to discuss the fight against AQIM. In November, I sent Deputy Secretary Bill Burns to follow up in Algiers. And then in December, in my stead, he co-chaired an organization we started to respond to some of these threats: the Global Counterterrorism Forum, which was meeting in Abu Dhabi, as well as a meeting in Tunis of leaders working to build new democracies and reform security services.

We have focused on targeting al-Qaida’s syndicate of terror – closing safe havens, cutting off finances, countering extremist ideology, slowing the flow of new recruits. And we continue to hunt the terrorists responsible for the attacks in Benghazi and are determined to bring them to justice. We are using our diplomatic and economic tools to support these emerging democracies and to strengthen security forces and help provide a path away from extremism.

But let me underscore the importance of the United States continuing to lead in the Middle East, in North Africa, and around the world. We’ve come a long way in the past four years, and we cannot afford to retreat now. When America is absent, especially from unstable environments, there are consequences. Extremism takes root; our interests suffer; our security at home is threatened.

That’s why I sent Chris Stevens to Benghazi in the first place. Nobody knew the dangers better than Chris, first during the revolution, then during the transition. A weak Libyan Government, marauding militias, terrorist groups; a bomb exploded in the parking lot of his hotel, but he did not waver. Because he understood it was critical for America to be represented there at that time.

Our men and women who serve overseas understand that we accept a level of risk to protect the country we love. And they represent the best traditions of a bold and generous nation. They cannot work in bunkers and do their jobs. So it is our responsibility to make sure they have the resources they need, and to do everything we can to reduce the risks.

For me, this is not just a matter of policy. It’s personal. I stood next to President Obama as the Marines carried those flag-draped caskets off the plane at Andrews. I put my arms around the mothers and fathers, the sisters and brothers, the sons and daughters, and the wives left alone to raise their children.

It has been one of the great honors of my life to lead the men and women of the State Department and USAID. Nearly 70,000 serving here in Washington; more than 270 posts around the world. They get up and go to work every day, often in difficult and dangerous circumstances, because they believe, as we believe, the United States is the most extraordinary force for peace and progress the world has ever known.

And when we suffer tragedies overseas, as we have, the number of Americans applying to the Foreign Service actually increases. That tells us everything we need to know about what kind of patriots I’m talking about. They do ask what they can do for their country, and America is stronger for it.

So today, after four years in this job, traveling nearly a million miles, visiting 112 countries, my faith in our country and our future is stronger than ever. Every time that blue and white airplane carrying the words “United States of America” touches down in some far-off capital, I feel again the honor it is to represent the world’s indispensible nation. And I am confident that, with your help, we will keep the United States safe, strong, and exceptional.

So I want to thank this committee for your partnership and your support of diplomats and development experts. You know the importance of the work they do day in and day out. You know that America’s values and vital national security interests are at stake. And I appreciate what Ranking Member Corker just said: It is absolutely critical that this committee and the State Department, with your new Secretary and former Chairman, work together to really understand and address the resources, support, and changes that are needed to face what are increasingly complex threats.

I know you share my sense of responsibility and urgency, and while we all may not agree on everything, let’s stay focused on what really matters: protecting our people and the country we love. And thank you for the support you personally have given to me over the last four years.

I now would be happy to answer your questions.

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SECRETARY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON: Public Schedule for January 23, 2013

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, tagged Benghazi, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, House Foreign Affairs Committee, Secretary of State, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, State Department on January 23, 2013| 8 Comments »

Public Schedule for January 23, 2013

Public Schedule

Washington, DC

January 23, 2013

DEPARTMENT OF STATE
PUBLIC SCHEDULE
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2013

SECRETARY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON

9:00 a.m. Secretary Clinton testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, on Capitol Hill.
(MEDIA DETERMINED BY SFRC)

2:00 p.m. Secretary Clinton testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on Capitol Hill.
(MEDIA DETERMINED BY HFAC)

4:30 p.m. Secretary Clinton attends a meeting at the White House.
(MEDIA DETERMINED BY WHITE HOUSE)

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January 22 Date for Hillary Clinton’s Testimony on The Hill Remains Unconfirmed

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Congress, U.S. Department of State, tagged Benghazi, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. Congress, U.S. Department of State, Victoria Nuland on January 9, 2013| 3 Comments »

At today’s press briefing, Victoria Nuland reported that the date for Mme. Secretary’s visit to Capitol Hill has yet to be set.

QUESTION: Can I ask you about Benghazi – excuse me – the Secretary’s testimony? There was a date floated out yesterday by Senator Corker. I think it was January 22^nd, if I’m correct. Has that been confirmed?

MS. NULAND: It is not yet. We are continuing to work with both the House and the Senate. As I said, we can’t do it before that week, obviously, because they are out of session. But we have to – we have not yet closed with the committees on the precise date.

QUESTION: But you could do the House the week earlier? Do you anticipate it would be the same day?

MS. NULAND: Yeah, I mean —

QUESTION: Like how it usually is?

MS. NULAND: Yeah, that she would go up once, she would do the House and the Senate is usually the way we do it. Yeah.

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Hillary Clinton Will Testify But The Date Is Not Set Yet

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Senate, tagged ARB, Benghazi, Bob Corker, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Kerry, MSNBC, Robert Menendez, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. Senate, Victoria Nuland on January 8, 2013| 6 Comments »

This is an example of why I prefer primary sources when I post here about Secretary Clinton. Senator Corker was on MSNBC this morning and suggested that if Mme. Secretary can testify on Benghazi on January 22, perhaps as early as that afternoon the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, under the direction of the future chair, Robert Menendez (congratulations, Bob), will confirm current chair, John Kerry as Secretary of State. Here is how Politico picked it up and reported it.

Hillary Clinton to testify on Benghazi on Jan. 22

By BOBBY CERVANTES | 1/8/13 2:41 PM EST

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will likely testify Jan. 22 before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the deadly U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi, the panel’s top Republican said Tuesday.

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said on MSNBC that he has spoken with Clinton’s chief of staff and said she seems “anxious” to testify on the Hill, following weeks of hospital visits after a concussion.

“I think they feel she’s going to be healthy enough to come in that day,” he said. “If that were to occur, and again this is Sen. [Robert] Menendez’s decision, we could move very quickly, maybe even that afternoon, to Sen. [John] Kerry’s [nomination] hearings.

Read more >>>>

By this afternoon it was viral that this date was “set.” Whoa, Nellie! It was not until after 4:30 this afternoon that that daily press briefing notification went out, but it was another hour or so before the transcript was actually posted. What Victoria Nuland said is at odds with what Politico reported.

QUESTION: And any updates (inaudible) on the issue about when the Secretary could testify on Benghazi and when the confirmation hearing for Senator Kerry could be held?

MS. NULAND: We’re still working with the Hill on all of those things, but I think we talked in some detail yesterday about the expected timing. They’re not coming back to work – the committees are not – until after the inaugural.

QUESTION: What is the Department’s preferred sequence in those hearings? That the confirmation hearing should precede the Benghazi hearing, or vice versa?

MS. NULAND: I don’t think we’re going to negotiate that here with you all. We’re working on it with the Hill to make sure that it’s appropriate for their needs and for ours. But as I said, the goal on our side is that we would have the Secretary able to testify, as she’s promised to do while she’s still sitting Secretary, but also have the confirmation hearing as quickly as appropriate after they come back in.

QUESTION: And just for the record, why is it important to the Secretary that her testimony on this matter should unfold while she is sitting Secretary?

MS. NULAND: Well, I think that’s appropriate. That’s what the Hill seems to want, and that allows her to complete her obligations as Secretary while she’s Secretary. Makes sense.

QUESTION: Then this would have to be done rather quickly. In theory, you wouldn’t want to have a confirmed Secretary, next Secretary waiting around until this happens, right?

MS. NULAND: I think we are hopeful that we can work this all through very smoothly with the committees.

So in fact, as late as this afternoon, nothing has been set – demonstrating why this blog, when it loses the primary source at the State Department will not be resorting to secondary sources unless confirmation can be made. It is going to be a hard slog, folks.

I am not saying that the January 22 date will not end up being the date of the testimony. I am only saying that it is irresponsible reporting to say that date is “set.”

All we really know is that Secretary Clinton has ordered all of the ARB recommendations to be implemented, that she is committed to cooperating with the committees, and that she intends to testify as sitting SOS.

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The Return of Hillary Clinton: A Glimpse Behind the Scenes

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Department of State, tagged Benghazi, football helmet, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. Department of State, Victoria Nuland on January 7, 2013| 29 Comments »

I posted about Mme. Secretary’s return to work earlier today, but I thought some might find this snip from today’s press briefing interesting.

TRANSCRIPT:

12:35 p.m. EST

MS. NULAND: Happy Monday, everybody. It is a great day here in the Department. As you saw, Secretary Clinton is back to work. And if you got a chance to look at the pictures we put out, she is in the pink, literally. She’s wearing a brilliant pink jacket today.

Just a little bit of color for you all, we have every Monday the large Department staff meeting where she has her deputies, all of the under secretaries, all of the assistant secretaries, all the special envoys. Riffraff like me get to go. And when she walked in the room, she had a standing ovation from 75 people assembled, and then Deputy Secretary Nides presented her with a gift from all of us in a big box. You probably saw the pictures. And she opened the box, and inside – first of all he said, “As you know, Washington is a contact sport.” And she opened the box, and inside was a football helmet with the State Department seal, lots of good padding, and also a football jersey that said Clinton on the back and on the front it says number 112, which symbolizes the number of countries that she’s visited as Secretary of State.

And she loved it. She thought it was cool. But then, being Hillary Clinton, she wanted to get right to business. So we do what we always do in that meeting, went around the room, and she heard from everybody what they’re working on and what’s coming forward. She did take the opportunity to reiterate to everybody that with regard to the Accountability Review Board recommendations that she wants to have every single one of those recommendations on its way to implementation by the time her successor is sworn in and takes up his duties, and that she’s expecting everybody to work hard in that regard. And then obviously, she was interested in hearing about all of the policies underway, particularly focused, obviously, on President Karzai’s visit later in the week.

So with that, let me go to what’s on your minds.

QUESTION: You said pictures, but to my knowledge, only one picture has been released. Are there others that have been put out that we haven’t seen or – the one that was released showed her sort of from the back with Deputy Secretary Burns next to her and kind of the table going out. So are there other pictures that you have not released and they plan to or —

MS. NULAND: Just before I came out, I saw three more – maybe they haven’t come through your spam filters there, Arshad – (laughter) – that have – there are three pictures of her receiving this gift, opening the box. There’s a picture of the helmet and a picture of the jersey.

QUESTION: Okay. They’re not out?

MS. NULAND: So if you don’t have those, we will get those to Reuters. I don’t know how we managed to miss you.

QUESTION: I think the —

QUESTION: They’re just out.

MS. NULAND: Are they just out? Okay, all right. Please, Matt, go ahead.

QUESTION: Yeah. Are we on the – are we staying on this subject?

MS. NULAND: Let’s —

QUESTION: Well, I want to stay on the subject of the meeting but not necessarily about her return. Was there anything other than Benghazi that was discussed? There was talk to anything of note that was – I mean, she has been gone for a month.

MS. NULAND: Yeah. Well, I’m obviously not going to get into all the details of an internal meeting, but she heard from all of her regional assistant secretaries about what the hot issues that they’re working are on in their region. She heard from many of the unders this morning, as she always does in that meeting.

QUESTION: On her schedule, could we just continue on that?

MS. NULAND: Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: So we know some of the rest of the week. How intense would you say this is compared to what she normally does, and are there any other adds that we should be looking out for? We have Karzai, we have some White House meetings.

MS. NULAND: Well, as you know, we usually update that schedule during the course of the week as more things come on to the schedule. Today, she’s doing a lot of internal meetings. She was sitting there in this big staff meeting saying, “And I want to see you today, and I want to see you today, and I want to see you today.” So she’s doing a lot of that. There may be other meetings outside the building today. We’ll let you know as it comes forward. But then, now being sure that she’s going to be here, I’m sure the schedule will get more full during the course of the week.

QUESTION: And any Kerry meetings?

MS. NULAND: Meetings with Senator Kerry?

QUESTION: Yeah. In person?

MS. NULAND: She has been talking to him virtually nonstop. She’s had – apparently had sort of daily phone calls, a number of phone calls. He is not in the building today. But as I said last week, she is 100 percent committed to having the smoothest possible transition, to helping him as much as possible, and she’ll be available as much as he needs her.

QUESTION: And then on Benghazi, of course, we all want to know what that might – what the schedule might be on that.

MS. NULAND: Well, let me just say that she will testify. She will testify while she is still sitting Secretary of State. As I mentioned last week, we have a new Senate Foreign Relations Committee; we have the 113^th Congress in now. We also need a confirmation hearing for Senator Kerry. So we’re working now with the committee on scheduling both the Benghazi hearing, the confirmation hearing, getting the sequence agreed with them. But as you probably know, they are now not coming back until right after the inaugural. So it obviously couldn’t be before then. But I don’t yet have dates to announce. You might talk to the committee too, but we’re continuing to work on that.

QUESTION: So that would obviously mean that she will be staying in place, at least for a while, after the inauguration.

MS. NULAND: Well, again, the committee is not in session. The Congress is not in session, Senate’s not in session. So obviously a new Secretary can’t take up duties until there has been a confirmation hearing, until there has been a vote, et cetera. So our expectation is that we will be able to sequence this so that she will testify as sitting Secretary. We will also have a confirmation hearing. And all of this, obviously, will be preparatory to a transition.

QUESTION: Just a couple of – some things. How’s she feeling?

MS. NULAND: She looks fantastic. She seems to be terrific.

QUESTION: And is her – is she now back to a regular schedule then? She’s not curtailing her days or anything? She’s planning to work as hard as she always does?

MS. NULAND: I would guess, judging by the way she was this morning, yes.

QUESTION: And then last thing: Is it still the case that she is – well, do you expect her to travel abroad during the remaining of her tenure as Secretary of State, or can you rule that out now?

MS. NULAND: We don’t have any travel scheduled. As you know, under doctor’s advice, she is not supposed to travel for the coming period. And it’s going to be pretty busy here, including, as we discussed, with her testimony.

QUESTION: And just one more. Is she on blood thinners?

MS. NULAND: Jill, I don’t have any more to give you, beyond what we have already put out, which we made —

QUESTION: (Inaudible) were indicating that —

MS. NULAND: I mean, her doctors made clear that they had prescribed them. I’m not going to give you a daily update on her dose, if that’s what you’re looking for.

QUESTION: No. I just wanted to confirm that she is.

MS. NULAND: Nothing has changed from that report, except that she’s obviously here.

QUESTION: This is kind of a variation on Arshad’s question. Is Secretary Clinton fully recovered?

MS. NULAND: Judging by the woman we saw this morning and the workload that she’s got, she seems to be fully recovered. Yes.

QUESTION: This entrance into the room today, where she received a standing ovation and so forth, was that, by any chance, videotaped?

MS. NULAND: No. There was a still photographer who – the State Department’s photographer who put out the photos you saw.

QUESTION: And I know that you have spoken from the podium in recent days, since she fell ill, about how the Department’s belief is that it has been very transparent with regard to updates about Secretary Clinton and her condition at the various junctures. Are there – were there legal requirements attendant at any point along the way here, in so far as she may have been completely incapacitated and somebody else had to become acting Secretary or anything like that?

MS. NULAND: No. We didn’t have to invoke an acting Secretary stipulation. But obviously you saw that her two deputies, Deputy Secretary Burns and Deputy Secretary Nides, picked up a number of activities for her. Deputy Secretary Burns did the trip she was planning to do that second week of December. They both testified on Benghazi after the ARB hearing. But it obviously – there was no moment at which her duties were transferred to them.

QUESTION: So I presume that had she, at any point, been fully incapacitated the proper protocols would have been invoked, correct?

MS. NULAND: Correct.

QUESTION: So she was never fully incapacitated?

MS. NULAND: Again, James, I think we’ve spoken to her health situation all the way along. There was no moment at which it was deemed that she was incapable of performing duties, except that her deputies were asked to take up meetings and trips that she couldn’t do because she was sick in bed.

QUESTION: And just as a final sort of punctuation mark on this, at any point was the State Department legal counsel or the legal advisors consulted with respect to these considerations?

MS. NULAND: To my knowledge, no.

QUESTION: I just wanted to ask if she saw fit to model her gifts. Did she put on the helmet? (Laughter.) Or was the ghost of Michael Dukakis too strong for her to be photographed wearing protective headwear?

MS. NULAND: She is – you’ll see in the photo – she’s holding it up, both the helmet and then later the jersey.

QUESTION: Yeah. But she didn’t put it on?

MS. NULAND: Let me just say, as a fellow chick, her hair looked fabulous this morning. I’m not sure I would have challenged my hair with a helmet either.

QUESTION: Well, if she did, if we can get a photograph of it —

MS. NULAND: Yeah, I’m sure you would love a photo. Even better if it had the Bills on it, right? Yeah. Exactly.

Okay. Please.

QUESTION: And last one. You said she will testify as long as she’s a sitting Secretary. When she —

MS. NULAND: When she testifies she will be the sitting Secretary is my point, that she will testify before he successor takes office was the point.

QUESTION: Oh. But if she’s – if Senator Kerry takes over, she can be asked to testify after that?

MS. NULAND: No. That wasn’t my implication. My implication was that she’s made a commitment to testify. We expect we’ll be able to get that done before her successor takes office.

QUESTION: In open session? Is that part of the commitment?

MS. NULAND: She is prepared to do it in open session, if that’s what the committees would like. Our understanding is that that’s what they would like. But obviously we’re still talking to them.

QUESTION: Sorry. Presumably she’s talked to Senator Kerry about this. This is all right with him, yeah?

MS. NULAND: What do you mean?

QUESTION: Well, that she’s going to stay on a little bit longer, and I don’t know if he’s like really itching to get into – I mean, theoretically, you could have the – his confirmation hearing could be on the 21^st. He could get – then there could be a vote. He could be in as early as the 22^nd. So I’m just asking, she’s talked with him and it’s okay with him if she stays on for a couple days?

MS. NULAND: I think without getting too much into every hour of every day, I think the expectation is that the sequence will work out such that she’ll be able to testify; he’ll be able to have his hearing. And by the time he’s fully off the floor, the testimony will be behind her.

QUESTION: All right. And then just a last one, and I – this is probably better asked of his office or the Senate, but do you know if he is planning to chair the hearing at which she – at least the Foreign Relations Committee hearing? Not his confirmation hearing but her testimony.

QUESTION: Yeah, that’s good work if you can get it.

MS. NULAND: (Laughter.) Is he going to chair his own hearing, is that what you’re asking? (Laughter.)

QUESTION: No, but is he going to chair the hearing at which she testifies before his committee?

MS. NULAND: Again, I’m going to send you to the SFRC on this —

QUESTION: You don’t know.

MS. NULAND: — but my understanding is that there are new chairs of the committee for the 113^th Congress. That’s my understanding.

Please.

QUESTION: Can we change topics?

MS. NULAND: Yes.

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Hillary Clinton: Her Return, Her Testimony, Her Successor

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Department of State, tagged Benghazi, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Kerry, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. Department of State on January 3, 2013| 8 Comments »

Today’s press briefing was replete with the kind of information we have all been seeking. When will the Secretary return to the department? Will she visit the press room? Will she travel? Will she testify on Benghazi before John Kerry is sworn in? Has John Kerry been in the building? The snippet with the answers to these questions and more is below.

MS. NULAND: Happy, what is today, Thursday, everybody, and happy 2013. I have nothing at the top, so let’s go to what’s on your minds.

QUESTION: Could we maybe first ask on scheduling? Now that the Secretary’s out of hospital and home and resting, have you any updates on possibly when we might see her back here again?

MS. NULAND: Well, first of all, to confirm what Jo says, that the Secretary was discharged from the hospital yesterday, that she’s resting at home. Some of the senior staff who spoke to her about half an hour ago say that she’s sounding terrific, upbeat, raring to go. She’s looking forward to getting back to the office. She is very much planning to do so next week, and we’ll have further precise details about that as she continues to make progress.

QUESTION: Any idea whether it’s likely to be towards the beginning of the week or back end of the week, or —

MS. NULAND: I don’t have any more details except that she’s very much looking forward to coming back next week. But in terms of the precise timing, we’ll let you know as soon as we know.

QUESTION: Has she made any calls to foreign officials, do you know, in the last day or so, or —

MS. NULAND: You mean in the 12 hours since she’s been released from the hospital, Arshad? (Laughter.)

QUESTION: She’s a formidable —

MS. NULAND: She is.

QUESTION: She’s a formidable person, so —

QUESTION: She is.

QUESTION: — I don’t know if she’s made any calls or not, but I’m asking.

MS. NULAND: I don’t have any other foreign leader calls to report today beyond the two that she made on Saturday the 29^th, but given that she is sounding really well, I’m sure she’ll be back into it soon.

QUESTION: Great. And one other thing: Just – you said, I think, yesterday that you were still working with the Hill to try to figure out when she might testify on Benghazi. Is there any greater clarity on that?

MS. NULAND: There isn’t, beyond saying that, as I said yesterday, she is committed to testifying, and we are working with the committees on an appropriate set of dates.

QUESTION: Is she likely to make an appearance before the press next week after her arrival in this building?

MS. NULAND: Is that a formal request for news, Said? (Laughter.)

QUESTION: Yes, and we would all love to see her.

MS. NULAND: I don’t have any schedule for her yet for next week, but as soon as we do, we’ll put it out as we always do.

QUESTION: Toria, I missed the very top of what you were saying. Is – can you describe any activities that she might have, and where she is at this point? She’s in New York?

MS. NULAND: She’s at home in New York. She is talking to staff. She is taking paper at home. She sounds terrific. She’s looking forward to coming back to work next week.

QUESTION: Is she having visitors or —

QUESTION: (Inaudible.)

MS. NULAND: Sorry, Indira.

QUESTION: Is she getting any visitors?

MS. NULAND: Her family has been there. Beyond that, I don’t have any details for you, Indira.

QUESTION: Would you expect that there would be any restrictions on her activities once she does come back to work?

MS. NULAND: I don’t have anything further on the medical side in terms of details. I think you saw one of the statements that we put out that her doctors have asked her not to do any international travel for a little bit, but I don’t have any more details beyond that.

QUESTION: That’s the statement from a while ago.

MS. NULAND: Yes, exactly. Nothing new today.

QUESTION: Do you expect her to – I mean, does that mean that she’s not likely to make any trips before Inauguration Day?

MS. NULAND: I don’t have anything to announce, but it sounds as if the doctors’ preference is that she not make any international trips for a little while.

QUESTION: And has there been many messages coming from the many of her counterparts around the world? Obviously, she may not have talked to most of them, given that she’s not been very well, but have you had a flood of messages from British Foreign Secretary and the French Foreign Minister and —

MS. NULAND: I think you could call the number of goodwill messages a tsunami, yeah.

(Laughter.)

QUESTION: Oh, really?

QUESTION: Victoria —

MS. NULAND: Yeah.

QUESTION: — a related question: Do we have any idea on when the hearing could begin for John Kerry?

MS. NULAND: In terms of the confirmation hearing?

QUESTION: Yeah, the confirmation hearing.

MS. NULAND: No. Again, we’re also working with the Hill on an appropriate date for the hearing. It goes to the calendar of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which hasn’t yet been set.

QUESTION: Is it likely to begin after the 20^th of January?

MS. NULAND: Again, I don’t yet have anything to announce, Said. As soon as we have an agreement with the committee, we’ll let you know.

QUESTION: The committee normally would announce that, wouldn’t they?

MS. NULAND: Yeah. Normally, they would announce it and we would confirm it.

QUESTION: And on the point – that point, previously the committee was saying we need the Secretary to testify before we go ahead with the hearing on Kerry. Is that your understanding? Have you gotten an update from them?

MS. NULAND: I think we obviously have made a commitment that the Secretary will testify, and we are obviously looking for a date for Senator Kerry’s confirmation hearings. To my knowledge, there hasn’t been any direct link made between the two of them. We are eager for both to happen as soon as is appropriate and as soon as the committee is ready.

QUESTION: And on Kerry, previously, I guess it was, like, last week, he was being prepped by the State Department some – on various issues for the – in preparation for his nomination hearing. Is that continuing? Has he physically been here? Has he been around?

MS. NULAND: It is continuing. As you know, we have a well practiced procedure for preparing new secretaries for confirmation hearings. The Senator was in the building yesterday. He had a number of meetings with senior staff, has received a huge pile of briefing materials. He is not in the building today. My understanding is he’s up at the Senate today, but we expect he’ll be back in the building on a regular basis starting tomorrow.

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Blonde Obsession: Republicans Desperately Seeking Hillary Instead of a Fiscal Solution – Shameful!

Posted in Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, state department, U.S. Department of State, U.S. House of Representatives, tagged Benghazi, Fiscal Cliff, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, State Department, U.S. Department of State, U.S. House of Representatives on December 27, 2012| 14 Comments »

Years of blogging here about Hillary Clinton have taught me that there is one group of people who have a hard time dealing with Hillary undercover, behind closed doors, or in any other way out of the public eye. They are her loyal followers and supporters. For them, over the years, I have posted a variety of slideshows as “Hillary-fixes” when she is either indisposed or catching a little R & R.

For two weeks now, a second group of people have raised a clamor over her absence from the spotlight. Neither loyalists nor supporters, in fact not even Democrats, their hysteria about her absence has been reaching fever pitch over the past few days in the most illogical context. They consist of a faction of the Republican Party (certainly not all) who demand, ever more loudly, to know where Hillary is because, they charge, she is feigning illness and injury in order to avoid testifying before Congress about events in Benghazi on September 11.

Here’s the thing: Congress is not even in session. To whom are they expecting her to testify? To an empty chamber? Not even responsible enough to address our fiscal problems in the waning days of the year, they are bouncing off the walls because they do not know where she is or what she is doing.

Ironically, if Hillary Clinton, as Secretary of State, had ever received the kind of press coverage for her work that she should have, this blog would have been rendered unnecessary. Since she has not received that coverage these pages have attempted to keep a record.

Today’s installment of the year in review here covered August 2012. When you look at it and at the August archive, you see that her family rented an East Hampton vacation home for two weeks of this year and that she did not even get to spend more than 10 days there. Most Americans with easier jobs get a longer vacation. By August 30 she was back in the air on a difficult trip on precious little rest.

Fast forward to this month when, while on foreign travel in Europe, she was felled by a nasty bug, fainted from dehydration, sustained a concussion, and was ordered by her doctors to stay home, rest, and recover doing as little work as possible. Oh the rumor-mongering that ensued! Oh the breast-beating and cries of “foul!”

That all of this occurs among the holidays indicates the lack of interest these people have had in Hillary’s whereabouts in the past. Except for once, in late December 2010 when a press release informed us that on January 1 the Secretary of State would be in Brasilia for the inauguration of Dilma Rouseff, we have not seen or heard from Mme. Secretary from about December 23 till early January – about the fourth – the routine reason for all of those Hillary-fixes for her loyalists.

So what’s up? Are these hysterical cries for news of her due to a sudden concern for her well-being? Nope! They insist she is trying to avoid testifying … additional proof that they never had an interest in her activities and know nothing about her. Hillary Clinton has already responded to Congress about the ARB report in writing and most assuredly will respond to all of the questions Congress wishes to put to her when she has rested and her doctors clear her to return to work.

Hillary Clinton is a straightforward person who prepares diligently for hearings like these and answers with honesty and dignity. She took responsibility for Benghazi long ago … before the President even did. She has nothing to fear or be stressed about where these hearings are concerned. These noisy people, if they want to do something of consequence, should get their behinds back to D.C. and do something about our fiscal situation.

They should leave Hillary alone. She worked herself sick for this country. We would appreciate a little work from the House with its paltry work schedule. Leave our Hillary in the shadow and let her recover.

***Edited to add this***

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to return to work

Updated at 05:46 PM today

WASHINGTON (WABC) — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to return to work next week.

SNIP

Clinton aide Philippe Reines released a statement saying, “The Secretary continues to recuperate at home. She had long planned to take this holiday week off, so she had no work schedule. She looks forward to getting back to the office next week and resuming her schedule.”

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