Today, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) released a statement about reports suggesting that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence had removed references to al Qaeda from talking points given to UN Ambassador Susan Rice about the terrorist attack in Benghazi. Rice infamously went on national television some five times to claim that the attacks in Benghazi were spontaneous and driven by a YouTube video.
McCain’s statement is rife with frustration:
I am somewhat surprised and frustrated to read reports that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence was responsible for removing references to Al-Qaeda from the unclassified talking points about the Benghazi attack that Ambassador Susan Rice and other officials used in the early days after September 11, 2012. I participated in hours of hearings in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence last week regarding the events in Benghazi, where senior intelligence officials were asked this very question, and all of them – including the Director of National Intelligence himself – told us that they did not know who made the changes. Now we have to read the answers to our questions in the media. There are many other questions that remain unanswered. But this latest episode is another reason why many of us are so frustrated with, and suspicious of, the actions of this Administration when it comes to the Benghazi attack.
If the Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, himself testified that he did not know who made the changes to the Benghazi talking points, somebody is lying. Clapper should be subpoenaed immediately.
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