@M M: My gut feeling is that there may have been a mole within the Embassy/Consultate who tipped off the assassins. If that’s the case, too much said too soon would spook him or her.

In fact, Stevens was not your usual diplomat nor had he been parachuted into a country he did not know much about. He had lived several months in Benghazi, as advisor to the rebel groups; he spoke street and classical Arabic and he liked to walk around on his own, stopping to chat with people he didn’t know, partake of their food in their own manner, etc. The undisputed (but studiously ignored) fact that tens of thousands of Libyans marched in protest against his assassination (taking down two of the militias) is, for me, strong evidence that he was not perceived as an enemy locally. A totally different situation prevails in Tripoli, where the militias who had fought for – not against – Ghadaffi are still armed and nowhere near as content with how things ended. In fact, it seems that the request for additional security was for Tripoli not Benghazi.

Anyway, there are so many “why-s” that need answering before throwing that first stone: a) why was Stevens there with such a small escort? b) why did the security men leave him alone at the Consulate (he must have felt safe)? c) why did the compound burn so furiously (diplomatic seats are usually fire-proofed to prevent that sort of blaze)? d) was the consulate even open (it may have been closed for refurbishments)? etc. etc. etc.

Were I prone to finding plots everywhere, I’d even ask myself who benefits within the USA: the dems or the reps? In any case, it’s deplorable (dispicable?) that the reps decided to make political hay of something that went wrong …. wilfully forgetting that things went far worse on September 9th, 2001 when almost 3,000 persons died in the USA, itself, not at almost 10 hours flight-time from New York.

Totally agree, bemused. And Rumsfeld going on Hannity a few days ago to hint that there was a cover-up is the height of hypocrisy. But, back to the debate, Obama could (and IMO, should) have repeated Hillary’s statement that the decision was made by state dept “security professionals,” and then gone on to make the points theat he did. These people screaming cover-up are ridiculous, but Obama needs to come out and clear up why the situation was so confusing. I personally think that although it was a terrorist attack, it wasn’t your “typical” terrorist attack; it was a crowd of armed men, and that is not all that different in appearance from an angry protest. But I would like to hear an official explanation, because otherwise this issue will dog him, especially in the next foreign policy debate.

Forgot: want to have some fun? Go to Ellen’s post regarding Peter Johnson on C&L. A masterpiece of subliminal endorsement masquerading as fair and balanced discourse.

M M wrote: "Obama won hands-down! But he did dodge the Libya question and he shouldn’t have.

As there’s an on-going investigation, too much said too soon might jeopardise the chances of catching the culprits. I, for one, am glad that the administration is treating this as simple murder until evidence to the contrary is in hand.

While I’m on the subject of cover-ups, how long did it take for the Bush administration to divulge even part of the truth about those WMDs in Iraq, the yellow cake in Niger (leading to the “outing” of Valerie Plame), the warning signals ignored that made it possible for 9/11 to happen … the list is endless. And the very same perpetrators of those cover-ups (if not actually planting evidence on Colin Powell) are whining that today’s State Department wanted to wait at least until the dust had settled. Give me a break!

IMO, President Obama was awesome and Governor Romney almost cracked as suggested by his body language (bent over, head down and fumbling for words).

Obama won hands-down! But he did dodge the Libya question and he shouldn’t have.

MagicUnderwear Mitt should finish up those expensive renovations on that luxurious LaJolla mansion—-the one with the car elevator. That’s where he will be living for the next four years.

This was fun…thanks, Ellen!

Let’s see if FoxGOPTV’s puke “doctor” Allblow will diagnose Rmoney with dementia for interrupting. Let’s see if the FoxGOPTV pukes acknowledge Rmoney’s rudeness.

Be prepared for the “lies” the fact-checkers are going to pin on President Obama.

i.e. President Obama claimed that 5 million jobs have been created since he became President. The actual number is 4.6 million.

President Obama claimed that Rmoney’s plan will add $500 million/year over the next 10 years to the deficit. The actual number is $480 million over the next 10 years.

Kelstar, I’m not good at predicting but I think Obama did himself much good at looking presidential. While Romney looked like a 2d rate wannabe.

Political disaster for Rmoney. Good!

@Kent – I lost count of rmoney’s lies. But I’m a bettin person. I’ll guess around 22.

Once the lies are called out Mitt has the sinking feeling there will be nothing to Harvest from this debate. The handler/backroom boys will help him spin it soon enough.

rMoney went from a commanding ‘boardroom’ voice to his more notable testy/controlling voice pretty fast.

Anyone care to predict how many point bounce Obama gets from tonight? 5-7 sounds reasonable to me.

Viz, you mean Kathy fro Wahhhhhhhhhhh!!!! don’t you?

- kathy from WA just gave us a preview … -

LOL!!! And even worse I’m sure.

Anyone count the rMoney lies? About 3 per question …

kathy from WA just gave us a preview of what lies her FoxGOPTV masters are going to be squealing for the next 24 hours.

I agree, Doors!