The president did not call the raid in Benghazi a terrorist act. He did make a more oblique reference to terrorist acts. The hearer could infer that he was referring specifically to Benghazi, but you would have to draw that inference. The president’s lack of clarity cleverly left the opening for his spin team to launch the lie intended to deflect the blame. Indeed, in his speech, the president boosted the lie his administration was in high gear to deploy against the truth. Without mentioning it, he referred to the false trail video:”We reject all efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of others.” Consider those words the trail head beckoning us all down a false path. The transcript is available.
Let me be more plain: every one of the president’s denunciations of “this type of senseless violence” could apply equally to an unruly mob, gathering in steam, giving themselves over to violent impulse. What the president did not say in the Rose Garden opened the door taking debacle to deceit.
The president may be offended by the accusation that he and his administration mislead the American people, but his team—the team of which he is the captain—did exactly that. They lied—and the president said nothing to correct his team. Knowing the truth, they immediately set into motion the absurd lie that the Benghazi raid was a spillover of street outrage over a video clip on YouTube.
The purpose for this Democrat deceit was that very base motive the president purports to be so offended by, that motive that he accuses his opponent of: political positioning—controlling the news about the debacle for the purpose of political gain. They loudly, repeatedly tried to sell us the lie that the administration’s debacle in Benghazi was something no one could have predicted, a street gathering gone wild, something to be blamed on someone else—a “Christian.”
Mr. President, just tell us the truth. One questioner gave the president that opportunity. He directly asked the president a precise question regarding who knew about the threat of the raid, and who turned down the security requests. Glaringly—blatantly—tellingly: the president did not answer the question.
And, despite his earnest promise: I am not seeing the kind of action that is the only appropriate response to this terrorist raid, takeover of our consulate, and murder of our people. No, Mr. President, I am not at all confident that you will hunt them down.
Mr. Romney’s anger over the official statement from the Egyptian embassy—that mewling, cowering apology—was justified and timely. At a place and time when America needed to project strength, Mr. Obama’s ambassador projected weakness. Mr. Romney was right to convey the opposite. We should be able to depend on the president to do that.
