No sooner had it been revealed that Special Forces have captured Ahmed Abu Khattala, the alleged ringleader of the Benghazi attacks, than the co-hosts of Fox News’ Outnumbered show went into partisan overdrive to find ways to use it to malign President Obama.
Fox has been obsessing about Benghazi ever since it happened, demanding a special committee, issuing directives to Congress and feigning concern about getting justice for the Americans who were killed. But now that an arrest has been made, I did not hear one word about justice for those who were killed. No, Fox is too busy thinking of all the reasons we should hate the Obama administration as much as ever.
The clip below is from the opening of the Outnumbered show, which appeared shortly after the news of Abu Khattala’s capture was announced. Let us count the anti-Obama talking points:
1. What took so long? The Obama administration could have (read: should have) captured Abu Khattala long ago.
Co-host Sandra Smith, to co-host Harris Faulkner: We go back to those days, those immediate days following the attack in which we heard President Obama vow that he was going to bring these guys to justice whoever these attackers were. All the meanwhile, …the day that the New York Times talked to him, (he’s) sitting outside of a luxury hotel, sipping on a strawberry frappé, within a month after the attack. And at that time, Harris, he said that no authority had yet questioned him about that attack. And he also went on to say that he had no plans of going into hiding. He was very confident at that time. And how much time has now passed, when we knew then
2. The arrest was only made to help Hillary Clinton launch her presidential campaign.
The “one lucky guy” for the show, Pete Hegseth: Something clearly changed in the calculus of the United States. And I think a lot of it does have to do with the State Department. I think this thing needs to be tied in a bow for certain individuals to have a clean break from an incident that has that has become and will continue to be a scandal and an anchor around a certain individual’s neck who may want to run for president.
3. The announcement was timed to help Hillary Clinton’s interview on Fox tonight.
Hegseth: What a great thing to announce on an interview tonight at Fox News, that the perpetrators have been brought to justice. It’s all too neat. And it’s too cute and I want to give, I want to be grateful, I always want to give the benefit of the doubt to our authorities but in this case, it feels too neat on the timing.
4. Remind people of the “false talking points” (even though they weren’t). Then suggest the Obama administration is still lying.
Co-host Kimberly Guilfoyle: We have an administration that perpetuated false talking points, OK? Which is just shameful to do to the American people, The people that serve over there so valiantly. And then you had, of course, Rice perpetuating those routinely on the Sunday talk shows. …The same thing happened again. It’s sort of their MO.
5. We should still suspect Hillary Clinton… about something.
Faulkner wondered if “there will be any sort of push now” to get Hillary Clinton back in front of Congress. “Because now that you’re going to build a case – potentially there are other suspects that are out there that they’re looking for as well.”
Co-host Kennedy: And what is her role in this as of now? Is she being briefed? I mean, how does a former Secretary of State who is so active in the Benghazi scandal, where does that stand?
Hegseth: ...I don’t know how they don’t bring her before the committee at this point, how they don’t ask additional questions. …I think they need to. I think the country needs to hear what she knew and when she knew it. …We did get reports… the terrorists were spinning their motives, knowing that we would jump at the opportunity to blame something other than terrorists for this attack and of course we did. … We bought it, hook, line and sinker.
6. The Obama administration will coddle the terrorist suspect, when they should torture him.
Hegseth: …Presumably because of what this administration stated, they’re not using enhanced interrogation techniques and this guy, from his frappé interview in the New York Times, seems to be more than happy to chat. …He’s blasé about the frappé. If he’s smart he’s probably clamming up right there too, because now we’ve told everybody that we won’t use difficult techniques if we need to, to extract information. …And he’s going to the U.S. where he’ll be (given) Miranda rights in New York City and given a high profile lawyer to defend him.
Guilfoyle: He’ll get a Johnny Cochran.
7. It is anti-American for the Obama administration to honor the basic tenets of our American justice system.
Hegseth: This is how we fight the war on terror today. We let him lawyer up and we don’t get the intelligence we need.
Leave it to Fox News to take what should be good news for all Americans and use it for its own divisive, partisan agenda.
:^)
They should let KKKlnnity or Bile take a crack at questioning him, since they are such experts on how to force confessions out of these terrorist suspects.
“Listening to these babbling bimbettes, especially that sellout broad with the relaxed hair, is pure torture to the ears. It’s like listening to chickens at a farm. Our apologies to the chickens.”
Yes indeed Antoinette. We certainly don’t want to “egg” the chickens on, otherwise the “yolk” will be on us!
;^)
[sorry about that one — I just COULD NOT resist!]
“Last I heard, the consensus was that the Romans were dead wrong in doing that to them, simply for wanting to worship their way.”
Question: is that REALLY the truth or are you just simply “lion”?
;^)
[sorry about that one — I just COULD NOT resist!]
After a week at this horror chamber he may take the elevator at the top of the skyscraper-where all the satellite dishes are-and take a leap.
Listening to these babbling bimbettes, especially that sellout broad with the relaxed hair, is pure torture to the ears. It’s like listening to chickens at a farm. Our apologies to the chickens.
They can’t just scoop him up and throw him in a dungeon, they have to prosecute him under the U.S. criminal code, and in order to do that, they have to have evidence that will stand up in court, which clearly will have to involve wiretapping and the like. They had to hope, or perhaps trap him into admitting his role in this on tape.
In any case, if his media interviews are any indication, he’s going to bust all to hell the right wings talking points on this because he has said to several media types that the blasted YouTube video was a big part of the motivation.
He may clam up before it happens, but the trial is likely to be very interesting.
I’m not surprised at all that these talking points are being put out there. We all knew that, as soon as anything like is happened, the FOXies were going to have to find some way to lessen the effect/the importance/the success of an arrest like this.
With regards to #1, who are these morons to question the length of time? Yeah, the suspect was doing interviews with some journalists, hanging out in a bar and enjoying a kind of fame that he most likely enjoyed – so what? Did it ever occur to these yammering pundits that letting the suspect have a false sense of security was just what the US agents/investigators wanted him to feel? I’ve had a now retired CIA employee point out that he has no doubt whatsoever that the suspect arrested has been under constant surveillance since the Benghazi attack so that all his communications could be monitored, so that our agents/DoD could see exactly who it was that he was contacting/meeting with, so that evidence/witnesses could be gathered, etc.
It matters not that it took this long. The fact is that NOW is when the President/Special Forces/CIA, etc. decided was the best time to make their move – and they got the guy without a single person being hurt/killed. Why the f*ck can’t FOX “news” and its talking heads just quit playing politics with this for even one moment?! It would be the right thing to do for the sake of the victims’ families/friends and it would be in the best interest of the justice system and “fair & balanced” reporting. And, yeah, my question was merely rhetorical – we all know why FOX “news” feels the need to always be playing politics even when it is to the detriment of journalism and the folks.
I’m still trying to figure out how that was supposed to work. Bin Laden only left his hidey holes when he had to spend time at a new one, his guys did literally everything for him. what was he gonna do if they pissed him off? Run outside and start yelling at no one in particular long enough for a satellite to see him?
Now, how long did take for Team Dubya to capture bin Laden? Oh. That’s right. They QUIT trying to capture him. And when Dubya left office, the man responsible for 9/11 STILL hadn’t been brought to the “justice” Dubya had PROMISED the American people (just one of the many things he left for his successor to finish doing).
I agree…it is most shameful to perpetuate false talking points to the American people…and also very damaging to society. Which is why Fox news should be shut down as soon as possible.
Also, regarding the “Hillary/timing” comment. Isn’t the next presidential election more than two years from now, or am I missing something? How is this good timing? Why do I have the feeling that if his capture occurred last year they would still be suspicious of the timing?
One of the commandments at Fox News must be… Thou shall not give any praise or credit to President Obama that is associated with success. We already know they don’t follow Thou shall not bear false witness against your neighbor, thingy.
