Like other “disclosures” from the CIA, the State Department and the White House, the information provided by the Pentagon on Friday does not address where President Obama was and who he was with when he was told about the events in Benghazi, and more to the point, what President Obama actually said and did about the events in Benghazi on 9/11 — in fact, it opens up several new lines of inquiry as to why “the entire U.S. government was starting from a cold start” on 9/11
All of the Obama Administration agencies that have provided information and time-lines during the last couple of days are taking everybody for a jaunt and a frolic into the tall weeds; they are suggesting a story line that nothing could have been done militarily to save the U.S. Ambassador to Libya and three other operatives on the night of 9/11/12. The Pentagon’s most recently disclosed Benghazi time-line documents the movement of certain personnel and material assets after the fact of the attack on the Benghazi “consulate” and its rescue by personnel from the Benghazi “Annex” — who weren’t Pentagon assets
According to the Pentagon chief spokesman, George Little, who yesterday gave the most detailed account to date of the military’s response to the attacks that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans on September 11th, “We didn’t have forewarning of this tragic event in Benghazi.... The entire U.S. government was starting from a cold start.” ( If that were true, it would bespeak a reckless and wonton disregard for normal caution on an ordinary “9/11 Anniversary”. Given the emerging picture of layer upon layer of prior intelligence regarding the goings on in and around Benghazi, together with evidence of an expectation of a significant up-tick in agitation and other radical activities across North Africa and into the Mid-East in advance of 9/11/12, any admission that "The entire U.S. government was acting from a cold start..." in reaction to the emergent events of 9/11/12 is absolutely breathtaking; and it would bespeak a level of culpability akin to depraved indifference or worse.)
According to Little and several prior reports, while the attacks were underway, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta was at the Pentagon meeting with Army Gen. Carter Ham, head of the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), who was already in Washington for consultations. Together with Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they ordered a Marine Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team (FAST) of about 30 personnel based in Rota, Spain, to the Sigonella Naval Air Station in Italy.
According to the Little briefing on Friday, SecDef Panetta ordered the deployment of not one, but two platoons of the specially trained Marines to protect “U.S. diplomatic facilities” in Libya. Based in Rota, Spain, the platoons headed to Sigonella for possible deployment to Libya. One platoon was dispatched on September 12th to protect the U.S. embassy in Tripoli. The other platoon was to have gone to Benghazi to secure the consulate compound, but was not sent there after it was determined that all U.S. personnel had been evacuated from Benghazi. Later on, that additional Marine Corps FAST team was sent to guard against unrest in Sanaa, Yemen.
As for air assets, Little confirmed that no American aircraft were involved over Libya the night of the attack other than an unarmed surveillance drone that arrived 90 minutes into the attack. He specifically debunked reports that an AC-130 Spectre gunship could have been dispatched over Libya at the time of the attack. According to George Little, “there was no AC-130 within a continent’s range of Benghazi” on the night of the 9/11 attacks there.
Some simple questions need to be asked, why on the anniversary of 9/11 was the AFRICOM General Carter Ham in Washington, D.C. “for consultations”; and why were there no military assets available to General Ham for quick deployment on the anniversary of 9/11 to possible flash points in North Africa, like the Benghazi compound and safe house?
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