Unfortunately, the US Senate, while populated by some great figures, and some ordinary personalities, also has the misfortune of having the Tea Party Caucus, with two of its most prominent members, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson. making a total disgrace of themselves yesterday in the Benghazi, Libya Hearings in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Aggressively grilling Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a disrespectful manner, Ron Johnson implied that Clinton was putting on an emotional acting job in her sincere upset over the loss of four diplomats, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, and seemed to expect Clinton to read 1.4 million cables personally!
Paul went further, saying if he had been President, he would have removed Clinton as Secretary of State immediately, because of the attack by terrorists in Libya, and her handling of the issue.. This excuse for a Senator has the gall to attack Hillary Clinton’s credentials, when he has worked with Johnson and others in the Senate, as well as House Republicans, to cut the budget for embassy security around the world.
What hypocrisy, what grandstanding, for the benefit of their own egos, particularly for Rand Paul, who is openly considering running for President, an office he will never attain, and if he the nominee of the GOP, he will have that party wishing for the days of Mitt Romney and John McCain, who at least were sane and had stable personalities, while Paul is a loose cannon, an embarrassment to himself and even to his more stable father, former Texas Congressman Ron Paul.
All that came out of this hearing was that Hillary Clinton handled herself well, came across as professional and intellectual, and Johnson and Paul just demonstrated that they are pygmies by comparison, lightweights intellectually, and show what happens when states elect US Senators who scrape the bottom of the barrel in their character and ethics.
Love your last sentence Dr. Feinman!! LOL! I couldn’t agree more!
I second what Margaret said!
I guess if the left despises Paul , then he must be doing something good. You can say whatever you want, the truth is, we still do not know what happened, why the administration said for 2 weeks that the attack was due to the video. Even Obama said that in his UN speech. No explanation whatsoever! What difference does it make? We the American people deserve to know the truth!
I don’t think Clinton should read 1.4 million cables but she sure should read or have someone inform her of the cables coming from a hot zone such as Libya.
Also, why should Clinton be special? She should be grilled and answer tough questions. She is not a Queen, she is there to serve us! Paul was the only one that didn’t make a spectacle of himself like the other a.. licking senators who were slobbering all over her overdoing all the “thank you for your service” mantra.
There you had the exhibition of the whole establishment ruling class, congratulating each other at how great they are..democrats and republicans establishment circling the wagon to protect one of their own.
@Juan
I know you have your mind made up and I just might be wasting my time but try to read this with a open mind: http://www.juancole.com/2013/01/republican-benghazi-clintons.html
@Juan
Those GOP Senators attacking Hillary Clinton about Benghazi are the same people who voted to slash embassy security funding.
Blue: http://www.afsa.org/Portals/0/flashing_red.pdf
Mrs. Clinton seemed to me to be making several points:
1.) It wasn’t her fault because it was all handled by people lower down the command ladder than she was. But that’s nonsense. She was in charge before the murders. And she was in charge after the murders and knew Mr. Obama’s team was lying about who did the killing and why.
2.) She cannot be blamed because she felt terrible about the killings and cried. This is not an excuse worthy of a high official of government. She is supposed to be a tough, sensible grown-up about her duties. If she can escape responsibility by crying, what’s next? Saying it wasn’t her fault because her father made her feel bad because she was a girl and not a boy? Blaming her health? What is she smoking or drinking if she thinks that the fact that she cried about the murders in Benghazi lets her off the hook? I once heard her say to Mr. Obama that “hope†is not a plan. Neither is crying instead of doing.
3.) Anyone who attacks her has political and not patriotic motives. But her management of the situation was a disgrace. Senator Rand Paul was precisely right. She should have been fired and more aptly, should have resigned over the lies about the murders. Her behavior in covering up for the killers was political and not patriotic,
It is terrifying that a woman of that level of irresponsibility is seriously in the running for President and will probably win in 2016.
I find it rather hypocritical that conservatives don’t believe Mrs. Clinton yet they believed Bush’s lies about Iraq.
Of course the conservatives are hypocritical, nothing new about that. They glorify Bush, and make Obama out to be a demon. They complain about deficits, which they multiplied, and forget conveniently that Cheney said that deficits are not an issue to be concerned about, but now with Obama in office, that is all they talk about, even though they are the ones who caused most of the national debt growth, particularly under Reagan and George W. Bush!
@Juan
I can’t open that due to not having Adobe on my computer.
Nothing much missed, as it is a list of talking points, which somehow did not exist for conservatives over the Iraq or Afghanistan War. It is a hatchet job, pure and simple!
@Ronald,
Thanks. That’s what I had a feeling it would be.
Blue: It’s the Senate Report prepared by the United States Senate Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs prepared by Senators Joesph Lieberman, Chairman and Susan M. Collins, ranking member. Search for “Flashing Red: A Special Report On The Terrorist Attack At Benghazi”. I’m sorry to say that Ronald is misinforming you, it is not a list of talking points. It has findings and recommendations. I thought you would be interested in something that is official and not from a partisan blog.
I wish to point out that Joe Lieberman was unwilling to join the partisan bias of John McCain and Lindsey Graham about Benghazi, and he and Susan Collins pointed out what could be done about the situation there that could prevent future such disasters, but not with the partisanship of McCain, Graham, Ron Johnson, and Rand Paul. The last two had no clue as to what went on, and showed how unqualified they were to sit in the Senate in judgment on others. At least McCain and Graham have displayed their qualifications for the Senate, and are not an embarrassment to the institution!
Interesting how some people change. Some go from saying my post was nothing but conservative talking points to ” he (Lieberman) and Susan Collins pointed out what could be done about the situation there that could prevent future such disasters”.
In any event, Clinton did not answer, nor did anyone in the administration, as to why they went on shows, the UN , and even spent money on a video apologizing for the other anti-Islamic video that had nothing to do with the Benghazi attack!! Absolutely nothing! Why did they do that? Well her answer.. “what difference does it make”! What an irresponsible, detestable reply.
Now some are going to have me and many millions of Americans believe that what we saw, what we heard , what the media and the administration repeated incessantly without pause that is was all due to this video, did not really happen! It is all a figment of our imagination!
In the meantime the only guy in prison is the miserable soul that apparently made that video! Unbelievable. What ever happen to freedom of expression? And here we are, nobody in the press asks questions, investigates, nothing!
So I am to believe Obama never said this, he never said that the video is no excuse for attacking the embassy and diplomats. No this really never happened. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCASno3kKrk
There Ron goes again blaming the GOP for the multiplying of the deficits! C’mon Ron. You know better than that – we just went thru this.
Hoopster, I am not saying that the Democrats are uninvolved, just simply that it is under GOP Presidents where most of the national debt growth has occurred. That cannot be denied–Reagan from $1 trillion to $3 trillion, and Bush II from $5 trillion to $10.5 trillion, and the two wars begun under Bush continue to add to the national debt, particularly Afghanistan, with no increase in taxes to cover those wars. Every war in American history has seen the tax burden rise to pay for the wars, including under the first Bush, so the debt could have risen at a slower pace if there had been tax increases. But as Cheney said at the time, national debt is not something to worry about.
If we as conservatives/classic liberals consider that Bush was a big government, big spending Republican establishment President, with a big spending Congress governed by big spending moderate statist Republicans and of course big spending progressive modern left wing statist Democrats, whose average % of deficit spending in relation to GDP, was nevertheless only 1.9%. How on earth are we supposed to agree with President Obama’s policies when his average deficit in relation to GDP is 9% ? Most economist will agree that 2-3% of deficit spending is sustainable and are not a problem as Cheney said. Even though as conservatives/classic liberals we would prefer no deficits, we are not utopians and know that the Presidency co-governs with Congress on this issue. But that said, it does not mean that 9% deficit spending in relation to GDP is sustainable. Quite the contrary. No tax hike on the rich or closure of loop-holes can pay for the type of government President Obama wants and sold to large part of the American electorate. Sooner, and no later, they will have to come after us, the so called “middle class and poor class” (whatever the hell that is). We saw it this month when are SS deductions went up. We are slowly seeing it with the creeping in of the Affordable Healthcare Act taxes, most of which will start in 2014. Every day there pops up a “little known provision” from that Act that somehow ends up screwing the little guy. Yet we are to believe that the government nirvana that the Obama administration, the progressive statist democrat party and the republican moderate “get-along” statist have created and are selling us, is not going to cost a dime? That the “rich” , the other guy, is going to pay for it? Who on earth can believe such nonsense?
@Juan
People adopt a label or a partisan persuasion for a reason – because they share certain values and beliefs that help shape the positions they take on policy issues.
My values and beliefs are Progressive, so I seek out and read Progressive blogs, like the Professor’s.
By only referencing Republicans, you are certainly implying its mostly their fault.
But you pick out these little tidbits (like the Cheney quote) and really hang your hat on them which is sad.
The idea that we’ve almost always had deficits and since Reagan had more Repulican time in the White House than Democrat would of course result in more deficits “due to” Republicans. If we had Edwards or somebody else in charge during the 2000’s I doubt our fiscal picture would have looked much different.
But if you want to believe in an alternate reality where somehow Democrats would have done things differently, be my guest. At the end of Obama’s second term I bet you’ll be giving hima freeride for his additions to the deficit. With deficits over a trillion each year, he’ll out do everybody.
But do you get a special tingle running up your leg for Obama just like Chris Matthews?
God Juan, stop talking so sensibly! You mean there’s a difference between deficits of 2% vs 9%?
It’s sad the progressive talking points are simply just that. Too bad they can’t be more honest about things.
Hoopster, let me assure you that I do NOT get a special tingle running up my leg for Obama, and did not think Chris Matthews did either! LOL But you will have to ask him, and I am sure you will receive in reply one of his wonderful laughs! LOL
I believe this post was about Secretary of State Clinton, on foreign policy and specifically the Middle East. So I thought this would give us some thought. The failure of the Administration policy during the so called “Arab Spring” can be summed up by this picture: https://twitter.com/betsy_hiel/status/294753311943426048/photo/1
Which Congress added the most debt?
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/111th-congress-added-more-debt-first-100-congresses-combined-10429-person-us
@Professor, Progressive Girl, Blue
Don’t feed the trolls.
Southern LIberal – why do you call me a Troll? Because I disagree with Liberal talking points?
Thanks Southern Girl. Conservatives hanging out on Progressive blogs are just wasting their time. They’re not going to make us change our beliefs.
PG – I hang out on liberal and conservative sites. I’m not expecting to change your mind. Just encouraging and honest debate instead of partisan drivel.
Hoopster, I can certainly agree on the idea of encouraging honest debate, and I enjoy the back and forth on here. The only thing I expect is to avoid name calling, and insulting and foul language, and if that shows up, I eliminate it as not promoting serious discussion. But I thank all of the participants who comment in a dignified manner!
Exactly right, Progressive Girl! It wouldn’t make any sense for me to be hanging out at Conservative blogs.