Former Head of African Command: Yes, We Knew Benghazi Wasn't a "Protest Turned Violent" Right Away

Did I say "retired"? The White House seems to be playing cutesy games with his actual status to keep him from rendering testimony to Congress.

But here's what he said at a security forum.

The former head of U.S. forces in Africa, General Carter Ham, told the Aspen Security Forum that it quickly became clear the assault on the American consulate in Benghazi last year was a terrorist attack and not a spontaneous demonstration.

“It became apparent to all of us quickly that this was not a demonstration, this was a violent attack,” Ham said. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton initially had portrayed the embassy attack as a response to an inflammatory internet video.

...

Asked if it was a terrorist attack, Ham said the intelligence left no doubt that it was.

“I don’t know if that was my first reaction, but pretty quickly as we started to gain understanding within the hours after the initiation of the attack, yes.”

Meanwhile, Obama's approval has dropped to a very low 41%, per a McClatchky poll. The lowest mark he ever scored on that poll was 39%, back in September 2011. We can do better.

posted by Ace at 07:09 PM

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