Cruz Lists 76 Lawless Actions: Abuse of Power by the Obama Administration

 

 

by Isabel Matos

Sarah Palin gave a huge heads up on her FB timeline. (She was on fire today!)  She listed several of the 76 Lawless Actions by the Obama Administration in The Legal Limit Report 4 by Ted Cruz. This is an unprecedented moment in the history of the United States. The report is nothing short of fascinating. Every action is relevant. They have been lozt in the discussion by a complicit media and gutless GOPe who refuse to challenge the President’s arbitrary enforcement of laws which he was elected to protect, not circumvent like he has been doing.

THE LEGAL LIMIT: THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION’S ATTEMPTS TO EXPAND FEDERAL POWER

Report No. 4:
The Obama Administration’s Abuse of Power
By U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX)
Ranking Member
Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on The Constitution,
Civil Rights and Human Rights

Of all the troubling aspects of the Obama presidency, none is more dangerous than the President’s persistent pattern of lawlessness, his willingness to disregard the written law and instead enforce his own policies via executive fiat.

The President’s taste for unilateral action to circumvent Congress should concern every citizen, regardless of party or ideology. The great 18th-century political philosopher Montesquieu observed: “There can be no liberty where the legislative and executive powers are united in the same person, or body of magistrates.” America’s Founding Fathers took this warning to heart, and we should too.

Rule of law doesn’t simply mean that society has laws; dictatorships are often characterized by an abundance of laws. Rather, rule of law means that we are a nation ruled by laws, not men. No one—and especially not the president—is above the law. For that reason, the U.S. Constitution imposes on every president the express duty to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.”

Rather than honor this duty, President Obama has openly defied it by repeatedly suspending, delaying, and waiving portions of the laws that he is charged to enforce. When President Obama disagreed with federal immigration laws, he instructed the Justice Department to cease enforcing the laws. He did the same thing with federal welfare law, drug laws, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

In the more than two centuries of our nation’s history, there is simply no precedent for the White House wantonly ignoring federal law and asking others to do the same.

For all those who are silent now: What would they think of a Republican president who announced that he was going to ignore the law, or unilaterally change the law? Imagine a future president setting aside environmental laws, or tax laws, or labor laws, or tort laws with which he or she disagreed.

That would be wrong—and it is the Obama precedent that is opening the door for future lawlessness. As Montesquieu knew, an imperial presidency threatens the liberty of every citizen.

Because when a president can pick and choose which laws to follow and which to ignore, he is no longer a president. 

****1****

Table of Contents

Governing by Executive Fiat              3
National Security                                  4
ObamaCare                                            5
Economy                                                6
Executive Nominees & Personnel     7
Free Speech and Privacy                    8
Other Lawless Acts                              9
Other Abuses of Power                      10

 ****2****

Governing by Executive Fiat

1. Disregarded 1996 welfare reform law in granting broad work waivers for work requirements of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). 1

2. Implemented portions of the DREAM Act, which Congress rejected, by executive action. 2

3. Ended some terror asylum restrictions, by allowing asylum for people who provided only “insignificant” or “limited” material support of terrorists. 3

4. Allowed immigrants in the U.S. illegally, who are relatives of military troops and veterans, to stay in the country and get legal status. 4

5. Extended federal marriage benefits by recognizing, under federal law, same-sex marriages created in a state that allows same-sex marriage even if the couple is living in a state that doesn’t recognize same-sex marriage. 5

6. Recognized same-sex marriage in Utah, even though the Supreme Court stayed the court order recognizing same-sex marriage in Utah and Utah said it would not recognize same sex marriages performed before the stay. 6

7. Refused to prosecute violation of drug laws with certain mandatory minimums. 7

8. Issued signing statements, refusing to enforce parts of congressional-enacted statutes. 8

9. Illegally refused to act on Yucca Mountain’s application to become a nuclear waste repository. 9

___________________________________

1 Caroline May, Obama administration ‘guts’ welfare reform with new HHS rule, Daily Caller, Jul. 13, 2012.

2 Mark Krikorian, Today is A-Day, National Review Online, Aug. 15, 2012.

3 Reid J. Epstein, Obama administration ends some terror asylum restrictions, Politico, Feb.5, 2014.

4 Julia Preston, Immigrants Closely Tied to Military Get Reprieve, N.Y. Times, Nov. 15, 2013.

5 Matt Apuzzo, More Federal Privileges to Extend to Same-Sex Couples, N.Y. Times, Feb. 8, 2014.

6 Charlie Savagejan, U.S. to Recognize Utah Gay Marriage Despite State Stance, N.Y. Times, Jan. 10, 2014.

7  Pete Williams & Michael O’Brien, Holder: ‘New Approach’ to reduce mandatory drug sentences, NBC News, Aug. 12, 2013.

8 Charlie Savage, Obama Takes New Route to Opposing Parts of Laws, N.Y. Times, Jan. 8, 2010.

9 Joel B. Pollak, Nuclear fallout: Yucca decision would affect immigration, obamacare, Breitbart, Aug. 14, 2013.

 ****3****

National Security

1. Falsely portrayed the Benghazi terrorist attack as a spontaneous protest against an anti-Muslim m YouTube video, 10 and then lied about the White House’s involvement.11
2. Illegally revealed the existence of sealed indictments in the Benghazi investigation.12
3. Failed to enforce the Magnitsky Act as required by law, by not adding Russian human rights abusers to a list of people not permitted to travel to or do business in the U.S.13
4. Killed four Americans overseas in counter-terrorism operations without judicial process.14
5. Continued to give Egypt aid after the military took over its government, even though federal law prohibit aid to Egypt in the event of a coup. 15

___________________________________

10 Bill Flax, Benghazi: Four Americans Died, Obama Lied, and the Press Complied, Forbes, Oct. 18, 2012.

11 Michael D. Shear, Email Suggests White House Strategy on Benghazi, N.Y. Times, Apr. 30, 2014.

12 Mike Levine, President Obama’s Surprise Revelation of Sealed Benghazi Indictment, ABC News, Aug. 9, 2013.

13 Obama’s Magnitsky Walkback, Wall St. J., Jan. 5, 2014.

14 Karen DeYoung & Peter Finn, U.S. acknowledges killing of four U.S. citizens in counter-terrorism operations, Wash. Post, May 22, 2013. 15 White House says U.S. has not cut off aid to Egypt, Reuters, Aug. 20, 2013.

****4****

ObamaCare

1. Granted a “hardship” exemption from the individual mandate for people whose health plans were canceled because their plans weren’t Obamacare compliant.16

2. Delayed the individual mandate for two years.17

3. Allowed individuals to buy health insurance plans in 2014 that did not comply with Obamacare.18 Extended this delay until 2016—past the mid-term elections.19

4. Extended the deadline to enroll in Obamacare.20

5. Illegally granted businesses a waiver from Obamacare’s employer mandate.21 Twice.22

6. Illegally continued the Obamacare employer contribution for congressional staffs.23

7. Illegally delayed the Obamacare caps on out-of-pocket healthcare payments.24

8. Illegally delayed Obamacare verification of eligibility for healthcare subsidies.25

9. Illegally required people to violate their faith via the Obamacare contraception mandate.26

10. As of May 2011, over 50% of Obamacare waiver beneficiaries were union members (who account for less than 12% of the American work force).2

___________________________________

16 Margaret Talev & Alex Wayne, Obama Lifts Health Mandate for Those With Canceled Plans, Bloomberg.com, Dec. 20, 2013.

17 ObamaCare’s Secret Mandate Exemption, Wall St. J., Mar. 11, 2014.

18 Stephanie Condon, Obama letting people keep canceled health plans for another year, CBSNews.com, Nov. 14, 2013.

19 Louise Radnofsky, Obama Gives Health Plans Added Two-Year Reprieve, Wall St. J., Mar. 5, 2014.

20 David Martosko, Busted! After promising ‘no delay’ in final ObamaCare sign-up deadline, Obama administration unveils new ‘honor system’ extension through mid-April, Daily Mail, March 25, 2014.

21 Sarah Kliff, White House delays employer mandate requirement until 2015, Wash. Post, July 2, 2013.

22 Juliet Eilperin & Amy Goldstein, White House delays health insurance mandate for medium-seized employers until 2016, Wash. Post, Feb. 10, 2014.

23 Ezra Klein, In 2014, Congress gets ObamaCare. Here’s how they’ll pay for it., Wash. Post, Aug. 1, 2013.

24 Avik Roy, Yet Another White House ObamaCare Delay: Out-Of-Pocket Caps Waived Until 2015, Forbes, Aug. 13, 2013.

25 Avik Roy, Not Qualified for ObamaCare’s Subsidies? Just lie – Govt. To Use ‘Honor System’ Without Verifying Your Eligibility, Forbes, July 6, 2013.

26 Joel Gehrke, Little Sisters of the Poor sue over ObamaCare fines, contraception requirement, Wash. Examiner, Sept. 24, 2013.

27 Milton Wolf, ObamaCare waiver corruption must stop, Wash. Times, May 20, 2011

****5****

Economy

1. Ordered Boeing to fire 1,000 employees in South Carolina and shut down a new factory because it was non-union.28

2. Implemented a moratorium on offshore drilling after the Deep-water Horizon oil spill without statutory authority, and continued to enact new versions after federal courts repeatedly invalidated the moratorium.29

3. Treated secured creditors worse than unsecured creditors in the Chrysler bankruptcy.30

4. Terminated the pensions of 20,000 non-union Delphi employees in the GM bankruptcy.31

5. Had SWAT teams raid a Gibson guitar factory and seize property, on the purported basis that Gibson had broken India’s environmental laws—but no charges were filed.32

6. Government agencies are engaging in “Operation Choke Point,” where the government asks banks to “choke off” access to financial services for customers engaging in conduct the Administration does not like—such as “ammunition sales.”33

___________________________________

28 Steven Greenhouse, Labor Board Tells Boeing New Factory Breaks Law, N.Y. Times, Apr. 20, 2011.

29 Frederic Frommer, Government takes third attempt at drilling moratorium, Associated Press, Jul. 13, 2010.

30 An offer you can’t refuse, The Economist, May 7, 2009.

31 Emails: Geithner, Treasury drove cutoff of nonunion Delphi workers’ pensions, Daily Caller, Aug. 7, 2012; Report: Obama administration played key role in GM Bankruptcy as pensions cut for salaried workers, not unionized ones, Associated Press, Aug 16, 2013.

32 Deborah Zabarenko, Gibson Guitar CEO slams U.S. raids as “overreach”, Reuters, Oct. 12, 2011.

33 Frank Keating, Justice Puts Banks in a Choke Hold, Wall St. J., Apr. 24, 2014.

****6****

Executive Nominees and Personnel

1. Made illegal “recess” appointments to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the National Labor Relations Board when Congress wasn’t in recess.34 Ignored the rulings of three federal courts of appeals that held those nominations unconstitutional. 

2. Appointed czars to oversee federal policy specifically because czars do not require Senate confirmation, earning criticism from stalwart Democrats such as West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd35 and Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold. 36

3. As of January 2012, 36 of the President’s executive office staff owed $833,970 in back taxes.37

4. As of 2011, 311,566 federal employees or retirees owed $3.5 billion in taxes.38

___________________________________

34 Timothy Noah, Cordray’s Recess Appointment Sure Doesn’t Look Constitutional to Me, New Republic, Jan. 4, 2012.

35 John Bresnahan, Byrd: Obama in power grab, Politico, Feb. 25, 2009.

36 Jordan Fabian, Feingold questions Obama ‘czars’, The Hill, Sept. 16, 2009.

37 Andrew Malcolm, 36 Obama aides owe $833,000 in back taxes, Investors Business Daily, Jan. 26, 2012.

38 Richard Rubin, Number of Tax-Delinquent Government Workers Up 11.5%, Bloomberg, Mar. 8, 2013.

****7****

Free Speech and Privacy

1. Illegally targeted conservative groups for heightened IRS scrutiny.39

2. Circumvented the Freedom of Information Act, by requiring White House Counsel review of all documents to be released under the Freedom of Information Act that the Administration believed pertained to “White House equities”—and then delayed in producing many of these documents by FOIA’s statutory deadline, or didn’t produce them at all.40

3. Got secret permission from the FISA Court to reverse restrictions on the National Security Agency’s use of intercepted phone calls and emails, permitting the NSA to
search American’s communications in its databases.41

4. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking to monitor about 80% of U.S. credit card transactions.42

5. Targeted Fox News reporter James Rosen by falsely labeling him a possible “conspirator” in a criminal investigation of a new leak.43

6. Secretly obtained phone records from staff at the Associated Press.44

7. Had meetings with lobbyists in coffee shops near White House to avoid disclosure requirements.45

___________________________________

39 Greg Sargent, Conservatives have themselves a real scandal on their hands, Wash. Post, May 10, 2013.

40 Mark Tapscott, ‘Most transparent’ White House ever rewrote the FOIA to suppress politically sensitive docs, Wash. Examiner, Mar. 18, 2014.

41 Ellen Nakashima, Obama administration had restrictions on NSA reversed in 2011, Wash. Post, Sept. 7, 2013.

42 Richard Pollock, CFPB’s data-mining on consumer credit cards challenged in heated House hearing, Sept. 13, 2013.

43 Another Chilling Leak Investigation, N.Y. Times, May 21, 2013. 44 Mark Sherman, Gov’t obtains wide AP phone records in probe, Yahoo News, May 13, 2013.

45 Eric Lichtblau, Across From White House, Coffee With Lobbyists, N.Y. Times, June 24, 2010

****8****

Other Lawless Acts

1. Aided drug cartels instead of enforcing immigration laws—as found by a federal judge. Border Patrol agents, multiple times, knowingly helped smuggle illegal immigrant children into the U.S.; “the DHS is encouraging parents to seriously jeopardize the safety of their children.”46

2. Illegally sold thousands of guns to criminals, in the operation known as Fast and Furious,47 and then refused to comply with congressional subpoenas about the operation.48

3. Dismissed charges filed by Bush Administration against New Black Panther Party members who were videotaped intimidating voters at a Philadelphia polling station
during the 2008 election.49

4. Argued for expansive federal powers in the Supreme Court, which has rejected the Administration’s arguments unanimously 9 times since January 2012.50

5. Sued Louisiana to stop school vouchers and keep low-income minorities trapped in failing schools.51

6. Threatened to arrest military priests for practicing their faith during the partial government shutdown.52

7. Muzzled the speech of military chaplains.53

8. Sued fire departments saying their multiple-choice, open-book written employment tests were racially discriminatory.54

9. Gave 23,994 tax refunds worth more than $46 million to aliens here illegally using the same address in Atlanta, GA.55

___________________________________

46 Stephen Dinan, Border Patrol helps smuggle illegal immigrant children into the United States, Wash. Times, Dec. 19, 2013.

47 DOJ Inspector General, A Review of ATF’s Operation Fast and Furious and Related Matters, Sept. 2012.

48 Jerry Seper & Stephen Dinan, GOP sues to force Obama, Holder compliance on Fast and Furious, Wash. Times, Aug. 13, 2012.

49 Kevin Bohn, Justice Department drops charges in voter intimidation case, CNN.com, May 28, 2009.

50 Senator Ted Cruz, The Legal Limit: The Obama Administration’s Attempts to Expand Federal Power; Senator Ted Cruz, Addendum – More Cases on Obama DOJ’s Expansive View of Federal Power; Senator Ted Cruz, Addendum 2 – More Cases on Obama DOJ’s Expansive View of Federal Power.

51 Obama, Holder Stand in Louisiana Schoolhouse Door, Investors Business Daily, Aug. 30, 2013.

52 Alex Pappas, Priests threatened with arrest if they minister to military during shutdown, Daily Caller, Oct. 4, 2013.

53 George Neumayr, Muzzling Military Chaplains, The American Spectator, Jan. 9, 2013

****9****

Other Abuses of Power

1. Released a mentally ill Guantanamo detainee,56 who had been a high-risk al Qaeda fighter in jihad combat since the 1980s.57

2. Backed release of the Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi.58

3. President Obama told NASA administrator to “find a way to reach out to the Muslim world.”59

4. Claimed the Fort Hood shooting was “workplace violence” rather than terrorism.60

5. Signed a stimulus bill that spent money on bonuses for AIG executives,61 and then acted shocked and outraged at the bonuses.62

6. Gave $535 million to Solyndra, which went bankrupt; Solyndra shareholders and officials made substantial donations to Obama’s campaign.63

7. Reneged on a campaign promise to cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term in office.64

8. Increased the national debt more in one term than President Bush did in two terms.65

9. Extended mortgage assistance to people who bought multiple homes during the housing bubble.66

10. Proposed rules that would have decimated family farms, by prohibiting children under 18 from doing many forms of farm work.67

___________________________________

55 Terence Jeffrey, IRS Sent $46,378,040 in Refunds to 23,994 ‘Unauthorized’ Aliens at 1 Atlanta Address, CNSNews.com, June 21, 2013.

56 U.S. judge orders release of mentally ill Guantanamo prisoner, Yahoo News, Oct. 4, 2013.

57 The Guantanamo Docket: Ibrahim Othman Ibrahim Idris, N.Y. Times.

58 Jason Allardyce & Tony Allen-Mills, White House backed release of Lockerbie bomber Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, The Australian, July 26, 2010.

59 Alex Pepper, White House, NASA, Defend Comments About NASA Outreach to Muslim World Criticized byConservatives, ABCNews.com, July 6, 2010.

60 Aaron Goldstein, Obama Still Doesn’t Get 9/11, American Spectator, Sept. 11, 2012.

61 Dana Bash & Ted Barrett, Bonuses allowed by stimulus bill, CNN.com, Mar. 18, 2009.

62 Helene Cooper, Obama Orders Treasury Chief to Try to Block A.I.G. Bonuses, N.Y Times, Mar. 16, 2009. 63 Bankrupt solar company with fed backing has cozy ties to Obama admin, Daily Caller, Sept. 1, 2011.

64 Josh Gerstein, 5 unmet promises of President Obama, Politico, Oct. 16, 2012.

65 Mark Knoller, National Debt has increased more under Obama than under Bush, CBSNews.com, Mar. 19, 2012.

66 Prashant Gopal, Boom-Era Property Speculators to Get Foreclosure Aid: Mortgages, Bloomberg, Mar. 5, 2012.

67 Washington Elitists Want to Take Over the Family Farm, Investors Business Daily, Apr. 26, 2012; Dave Jamieson, Child Labor Farm Rules Scrapped by White House Under Political Pressure, Huffington Post, Apr. 27, 2012.

****10****

11. Former “safe schools czar” has written about his past drug abuse and advocated promoting homosexuality in schools.68

12. Nominated Timothy Geithner—who had significant tax issues 69—to head the Treasury Department, which enforces tax laws.

13. Reneged on campaign promise to broadcast healthcare reform negotiations on C-SPAN.70

14. Reneged on a campaign promise to wait five days before signing any non-emergency bill (at least 10 times during first 3 months in office).71

15. Unilaterally, increased the minimum wage for federal contract workers from $7.25 to $10.10, via executive order.72

16. Cancelled all White House tours after sequestration—purportedly saving $18,000 per week—even though President Obama had spent more than $1 million in tax money to golf with Tiger Woods one weekend a few weeks before.73

17. Adopted pro-union “ambush election” rules.74

18. Pressured Ford to pull an anti-auto-bailout TV ad.75

19. Actively, aided in George Zimmerman protests.76

20. Tried to seize a privately owned motel when guests used illegal drugs at the motel.77

21. Shut down the Amber Alert website, while keeping up Let’s Move website, during the partial government shutdown.78

22. Gave supervised release to a convicted criminal (an alien here illegally) who later killed a nun in a DUI.79

___________________________________

68 Maxim Lott, Critics Assail Obama’s ‘Safe Schools’ Czar, Say He’s Wrong Man For the Job, FoxNews.com, Sept. 23, 2009.

69 Jonathan Weisman, Geithner’s Tax History Muddles Confirmation, Wall St. J., Jan. 14, 2009.

70 Chip Reid, Obama Reneges on Health Care Transparency, CBSNews.com, Jan. 7, 2010.

71 Jim Harper, The Promise That Keeps on Breaking, The Cato Institute, Apr. 13, 2009.

72 Ed Henry, Obama to sign executive order raising minimum wage for federal contractors, FoxNews.com, Jan. 28, 2014.

73 Tom Blumer, Our Petty, Country-Be-Damned President, PJ Media, Mar. 8, 2013.

74 Senator John Thune, NLRB’s ambush elections would hurt local businesses, The Hill, Apr. 19, 2012.

75 Daniel Howes, WH Pressures Ford to Pull Bailout Ad, FoxNews.com, Sept. 27, 2011. 76 Documents Obtained by Judicial Watch Detail Role of Justice Department in Organizing Trayvon Martin Protests, Judicial Watch, July 10, 2013.

77 George Will, When the looter is the government, Wash. Post, May 18, 2012. 78 Update: Let’s Move Website Works Fine – Obama plays Politics with Lost Children, shuts down Amber Alert website, The Right Scoop, Oct. 6, 2013.

****11****

23. Shut down an Amish farm for selling fresh unpasteurized milk across state lines.80

24. Spent $7 million per household in “stimulus funds” to connect a few Montana households to the Internet.81

25. Spent $205,075 in “stimulus” funds to relocate a shrub that sells for $16.82

26. Fired an inspector general after investigating an $850,000 AmeriCorps grant received by a nonprofit run by former NBA star and Obama supporter Kevin Johnson (now mayor of Sacramento).83

___________________________________

79 JW Forces Release of DHS Report on Illegal Alien Charged with Killing Virginia Nun in August 2010 Drunk Driving Incident, Judicial Watch, Mar. 4, 2011.

80 Stephen Dinan, Feds shut down Amish farm for selling fresh milk, Wash. Times, Feb. 13, 2012.

81 Nick Schulz, How Effective Was The 2009 Stimulus Program?, Forbes, July 5, 2011. 82 Thomas Cloud, Shovel Ready in San Fran: $205,075 to ‘Translocate’ One Shrub from Path of Stimulus Project, CNSNews.com, Apr. 12, 2012.

83 Susan Crabtree, Allies of official fired by Obama mount defense, The Hill, June 24, 2009.

****12****

Advertisement

House Republicans Busted in “Benghazi: The Truth Behind the Smokescreen” by Bret Baier!

Many of you may have missed it on television, so I urge you to watch the report that aired on Friday, June 28th, on the Benghazi scandal. It is compelling, disturbing and to be continued, I hope!

After spending nine hours putting Bret Baeir’s report in writing (I was so riveted I couldn’t resist!), I can say there were explosive details like the promo advertised, the biggest one for me (because I hate the GOP and always want proof they are against us), can be found at the very end of the article (the tease is already in the title).  I looked up all of the names mentioned in the report myself because I like know who is doing what wrong when bad things happen.

What happened in Benghazi was not just a tragedy, but a blatant, negligent and criminal act on the part of our Government, Obama’s government. It is curious to me that most of the so-called “tragedies” Clinton cited at the very  beginning of the report seemed to be under Democratic Presidents who are usually dangerously naïve or just weak in foreign affairs (I am being kind). The attacks on our soil were incremental, leading to 9/11, the worst one yet.

Speaking of Hillary, after seeing her again today, I was reminded of how repulsive Mrs. Clinton is. She is a villain of the highest order.  She is corrupt.  She has blood on her hands, and she should never be allowed to run for President. She should hang her head in shame, and so should every Republican who defends her, including Rinos like Jeb Bush, John McCain and Marco Rubio, who is now officially a member of the GOPe brotherhood. When they cover for her by thwarting any efforts to investigate infiltration at the highest ranks in our government, it leads me to believe they all have something to hide. I continue to push for our leaders and journalists to EXPOSE infiltration in the GOP, as Michele Bachmann seems to be out to lunch quite a bit lately.

The story of Benghazi seems to strike a deep chord in all of us. The way these Americans died was preventable. It is just so much crueler than the other scandals on Obama’s watch. It is no wonder seventy-one percent of Americans want Congress to continue investigating the Benghazi attacks. (I have news for the American public, and it isn’t good; but for the sake of this post, I will keep my lack of optimism about Congress’s will to do what is right to myself.)

The report begins with a background description of the politics leading up to September 11th, 2012: (U.S. policies towards terrorism)that he sequence of events during the attacks themselves, and the possible presidential cover-up about what happened that night.  The political and bureaucratic smokescreen makes Benghazi not just a tragedy, according to Baier, but a scandal.  The written information is below the clip.  I found the video in an article in Bizpacreview this morning.

1.  Background Politics 

Hillary Clinton states before Congress that to understand Benghazi, one must go back a few years.  Benghazi joins a long list of tragedies for America:  1979 – the Tehran Hostage situation, 1983 – the Embassy and Marine Barracks bombed in Beirut, 1996 – Saudi Arabia Khobar Towers.

Islamic supremacism is the motivating cause of these attacks, according to Andrew McCarthy, former federal prosecutor who won the conviction of the blind Sheik who wanted to bomb New York tunnels and landmarks in the 1990’s.  The ideology, which has not changed, has fueled attacks in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s.

The difference between the Obama administration and its critics, is the lessons learned from that history. President Bush treated 9/11 as an act of international terrorism, to be dealt with as an aggression against the U.S. by a hostile power. Obama’s approach was to deny there was a global war on terror. Smart diplomacy would manage the problems in the Middle East and elsewhere.

June 24, 2009 Obama’s apology tour began with his speech in Cairo. It was followed by the brutal suppression of Iran’s Green Revolution, an uprising in Tunisia, and a popular revolt against Mubarak “the Arab Spring”, in Egypt, presenting Obama with a defining foreign policy crisis in the Middle East.

He was forced to explain his intervening in a civil war in Libya to stop the blood bath by Gadhafi in an otherwise unknown place, Benghazi.

September, 2012. A Coptic Christian from a jail cell in Southern California came up with a loopy scheme to make a low-budget film called Desert Warrior. His message to the world:  “Be careful. Evil (Terrorism Culture) coming from the East.” It was released upon his parole and became part of the smokescreen that obscured the truth what happened on the 11th anniversary of 9/11/2001.

To this day, it is unknown where the story of the Mohammed video came from. (John Bolton)

2. Fox NEWS timeline 

Using unclassified and investigated reports released from Congress and the State Department, and public Presidential remarks, as sources, as well as their own investigative reporting, Fox News comes up with a timeline showing how disastrous decisions led to deadly consequences.

October, 2011 – Benghazi was supposed to be safe from violence.  The American compound built West of the city is heavily secured. The “Annex”, now known as a CIA facility, is more than a mile away.

Tripoli is the capitol of Libya. Based there is a Department of Defense Sub-Security Team with Special Forces capability.

February, 2012 – Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Wood, in charge of the SS team in Tripoli, despite security incidents every three days in the Spring of 2012, are set to leave Libya by summer’s end.

March 28th:  Americans send the Secretary of State a cable requesting more security.

April 6th:  A bomb is tossed over the Benghazi compound.

April 19th:  A return cable signed by Clinton says SECURITY WOULD BE SCALED BACK (Clinton would later deny knowing about exchange.)

June 6th:  An IED is placed at the compound’s North gate. No one is hurt, again. Christopher Stevens is the newly named Ambassador asks to keep two security teams the State Department had ordered to be removed.

June 11th:  His request is denied. The Brits decide to pull out of Benghazi after a convoy transporting the United Kingdom’s Ambassador is ambushed.  He was not hurt, but two of his security squad were.  Lieutenant Col. Wood conducted an investigation and said it was clearly an assassination attempt by skilled operators. He realizes these operators are an increasing danger to Americans who are last on their target list.

June 25th: Stevens sends another cable to Washington, warning of a deteriorating situation where Libyan extremists are “targeting international organizations and foreign interests.”

The State tells the Special Forces Security Team protection is not needed in a place like Benghazi.

Bret speaks with Lieutenant General Morgan who was the United States Deputy Under-Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.  Lieutenant Morgan explains their lack of response as unrealsitic.

Morgan: “They were trying to tell a better story than what was unfolding on the ground. It’s because they live in a fantasy world.”  Speaking of fantasy..

Hollywood.  The Coptic Christian who made the “Desert Warrior” movie renames it “Innocence of Bin Laden.” A screening in Los Angeles is advertised in late June. Steven Klein, an anti-Islamic activist and spokesman for the film, says fliers were to get the attention of young Taliban wannabes in California, to see who their real “hero” is. The movie portrays the prophet Mohammed as a homicidal gay child molester. It is released, but no one shows up to see it.

July 2nd: A trailer for the film, renamed “Innocence of Muslims”, is uploaded to YouTube by “Sam Bacile”. Nakoula Basseley Nakoula denies using the alias Sam Bacile; but it is him, and he violates his probation.

July 6th: Americans in Libya are even more concerned about terror attacks.

Charlene LAMB, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Diplomatic Security, sends back a response urging them not to make formal requests for an extension of the security teams set to leave in August.

According to Mr. Nordstrom who testifies before Congress: “Lamb was discouraging, to put it mildly. Why do you keep raising these issues? Why do you keep putting this forward?”

August 8th: Ambassador Stevens sends another cable: “What we have seen are not random crimes of opportunities but rather targeted and discriminate attacks.” Less than a week after the cable, Lieutenant Colonel Wood and his team leave the country.

Stevens is being pushed to increase U.S. diplomatic presence in the city, and soon.

Hicks:  “According to Chris, Secretary Clinton wanted Benghazi converted into a permanent constituent post. The timing for this decision was important, Chris needed to report before September 30th, the end of the fiscal year.”

September 6th:  John Kerry at the Democratic National Convention in  Charlotte, North Carolina: “Today, without a single American casualty, Moammar Gadhafi is gone, and the people of Libya are free!”

The same day, Morris Sadak, an Egyptian-American Coptic Christian activist, emails journalists to promote a 9/11 event with Koran-burning pastor Terry Jones, including a link to Nakoula’s YouTube trailer.

September 8th:   Cairo. Popular Islamist broadcaster airs portions of trailer. Outrage ensues.

September 9th:  As Ambassador Stevens gets ready to leave Tripoli for Benghazi, Diplomatic Security Officer in Tripoli, Alec Henderson, warns that the Feb. 17th Martyr’s Brigade can’t be trusted to protect him.

September 10th:  Benghazi. Ambassador Stevens  arrives in the city; though his movements are supposed to be secret, the local media is present.  And that is cause for grave concern on the eve of 9/11.

September 11th, 2012

6:43 am  Benghazi.  A Libyan police officer atop a building next door is caught photographing the interior of the American compound.  The idea that a Libyan cop might be casing the place, rattles Information Management Officer, Sean Smith.

12:00 noon Sean Smith messages a friend on the internet: “Assuming we don’t die tonight, we saw one of ‘our police’ that guard the compound taking pictures.”

12:11 pm Cairo.  U.S. Embassy staffers release a statement about Nakoula’s video shown on Egyptian t.v.: “We firmly reject the actions by those who abuse the universal right of free speech to hurt the religious beliefs of others.”  By late afternoon the Cairo Embassy is surrounded by protestors, voicing a variety of grievances. Andrew McCarthy says the video is part of a larger demonstration brandishing of the Al-Qaeda flag, with chants of  “Obama, Obama,  there are still a billion Osamas”.

6:45 pm  The Egyptian crowd storms the embassy. America’s #2 man in Libya, Greg Hicks, reaches out to his boss, Ambassador Stevens, in Benghazi.

Hicks:  “Chris, are you aware of what’s going on in Cairo?  He said, No.  So I told him that the Embassy had been stormed and they were trying to tear down our flag. He said ‘thanks very much’.”  No sign of protest in Benghazi over the video, or anything else.

9:00 pm Ambassador Stevens and Sean Smith retire for the evening in the main residence. Four diplomatic security agents accompany them: including lead offer, Scott Wickland, and Alec Henderson.

(Congressman asks if there was any awareness of a YouTube video) Hicks: “The YouTube video was a non-event in Libya.”

9:42 pm Agent Henderson hears shots and an explosion. He sounds an alarm.

Charlene Lamb: “He also alerted the quick reaction security team stationed nearby, the Libyan’s 17th February Brigade, the Embassy in Tripoli, and the Diplomatic Security Command Center in Washington.”

The armed attackers enter the main gate without warning or resistance from the Brigade.

In Tripoli, Hicks finds out the Embassy is under attack. He calls Stevens who’s hiding with Sean Smith in the safe haven. Stevens says, “Greg, we’re under attack”.  Attackers set the residence ablaze.  The safe haven fills with thick dark smoke.  Former Navy Seals Tyrone Woods and other agents at the Annex, more than a mile away, get their weapons ready.

Hicks: “They were mobilizing a response team there to go to our facility and provide reinforcements to repel the attack.”

9:59 pm An unarmed surveillance drone hits towards the compound. Hicks calls the Operations Center at the State Department in Washington (4 pm) to report the attack.  When asked if he reported a protest in connection to a YouTube video, Hick responds: “No. The only report that our mission made through every channel, was that there was an attack upon the consulate.”

4:05 pm Washington. An internal State Department Ops alert reports that the “Benghazi special mission is under attack.”

Hillary: “I was notified of the attack after 4 pm, I spoke to the National Security Advisor, Tom Donilon. Tom was my first call. I instructed Senior Department Officials to consider every option to just break down the doors of the Libyan officials to get as much security support as we possibly could.”

State Department Counter Terrorism Official, Mark Thompson, wants to immediately dispatch the U.S. Foreign Emergency Support Team, called FEST.

Thompson:  “It is on alert to do just this mission. I notified the White House of my idea. We needed to act now, not wait.” At the annex, sources tell Fox News, the CIA Team is told to stand down twice.

An independent Accountability Review Board appointed by the State Department concluded the CIA officers were “not delayed by orders from superiors”.

10:07 pm  Benghazi. The CIA team leaves the Annex anyway, bound for the compound.  But what about help for the compound?

10:45 pm  When asked if he got help from the Pentagon, Hicks:  “I asked the Defense Attache if anything was coming. The short answer was, No. So, I said, thank you very much, and we went on with our work.”

10:54 pm Benghazi. The six-man response team from the Annex drives the attackers out of the compound. By that time, Sean Smith has been burnt dead, but nobody can find Ambassador Stevens.

5:00 pm Washington. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta attends his weekly meeting with the President.

Panetta:  “We ordered all available DOD assets to respond.” (Bret Baier interjects:  but none outside Libya will.) “The quickest response option available was a security team that was located at the Embassy in Tripoli.” (Bret Baier interjects:  but the Americans had no plane in Tripoli).

Hicks:  “We agreed that we would move forward with chartering a plane to fly a response team to Benghazi to provide additional reinforcements.”

11:10 pm  Benghazi. A U.S. drone armed only with cameras begins circling above the compound. Five minutes later, a second wave of attackers arrives. Hicks testifies that the Annex team withdrew from the facility when the second wave of attackers took it over.

Senator Graham: “Did anyone leave any base anywhere to go to the aid of the people under attack in Benghazi, Libya, before the attack ended?”

Panetta: “No. Because the attack ended before they could go on the ground.” Senator Lee points out this was an attack that lasted nearly 8 hours from start to finish.

Panetta replies: “There was this initial attack on the facility at Benghazi. Frankly we thought that was the end of what had occurred there. And we had no intelligence that a second attack would take place at the Annex two miles away.”

September 11th turns into the 12th

Bret Baier describes Benghazi becoming “a modern-day Alamo, a handful of brave Americans facing terrible odds, with no help on the way.”

5:30 pm Washington. Leon Panetta finishes meeting with the President.  He summons U.S. Africa Commander Carter Ham, Joint-Chief Chair, Martin Dempsey, and other Senior staff to discuss Benghazi. That meeting lasts over 2 hours.

Tripoli. Greg Hicks has neither hope that help is on the way, nor time to dwell on it. Hicks testifies that they’re on their own, and have to try to pull this off with the resources they have.

12:00 am  Benghazi. The Annex is under attack. Hicks: “The second phase of this is that after the teams have returned to the Annex, they suffer for about an hour and a half of probing attacks.”

After a two-hour scramble, Team Tripoli finally secures a charter plane, among those aboard, former Navy Seal, Glen Doherty.  Meanwhile, in Washington, State Department Counter-Terrorism official, Mark Thompson, wants to know why the Foreign Emergency Support Team (FEST) had not deployed as requested.

Thompson: “The reason I was given was that this was not the time for the FEST. It might be too unsafe for the FEST.”

Chaffetz: “How do you react to that?”

Thompson:  “We live by a code.  That code says you go after people when they’re in peril .. when they’re in the service of their country.”

12:07 am Libya.

6:07 pm Washington. The State Department issues an internal Ops alert, an Al-Qaeda-linked, Ansur al-Sharia, is claiming responsibility for Benghazi.

12:30 am Twitter posts are calling for attacks on the Embassy in Tripoli.  Hicks:  “And so we now have to take care of ourselves.”

1:00 am  Someone using Wickland’s cell phone redials Hicks. The caller says the Ambassador is at the Benghazi Medical Center.

Hicks: “We learn that it is a hospital which is controlled by Ansur al-Sharia.” Hicks suspects a trap.

1:15 am Libya. The American Charter plane from Tripoli arrives at the Benghazi airport, but there’s a hitch.

Hicks: “The Tripoli Team had to stay at the Benghazi airport, because they had no transport and not escort from the Libyans.” The delay would give the terrorists time to set up another lethal assault.

2:00 am Tripoli.  Hicks gets a call from Washington (8 pm). Secretary of State Clinton along with her Senior Staff on the phone, to ask what was going on.

Hillary:  “I spoke with our Charge in Tripoli, I talked with the then Libyan National Congress President to press him on greater support. We were reaching out to everyone we could find to try to get an update about Ambassador Stevens.”

8:39 pm Washington. Five hours after the attacks began. After the 2 hour meeting, Panetta officially authorizes a military response (of sorts).

Panetta:  “First, we ordered a marine fleet anti-terrorism secure team to prepare, to deploy to Benghazi. A second fast platoon was ordered to prepare, to deploy to Tripoli. A special operations force, training in Central Europe, was ordered to prepare, to deploy to (inaudible).”

Ayotte: “to prepare to deploy (3 times) is not deployment of actually going towards Benghazi.”

Chaffetz: “Why did it take almost four and half hours to start the clock to prepare to deploy? We had people who were getting killed, we had an Ambassador who was missing. We didn’t know when that attack was going to end, and the American Military did not respond.”

Bret asks about the House Republicans’ own Interim Progress report that concluded in April that “Department of Defense officials and military personnel reacted quickly to the attacks in Benghazi”. 

Bret Baier quotes from the House Joint Committee Report: “There were no planes, no helicopters, no armed drones, nothing could have saved the lives of the Americans killed in Benghazi.”

He asks if he’s reading it correctly. Chaffetz responds by saying the report is an interim report, that the discussion of what the military did and did not is not yet complete.

3:00 am Hicks receives a call from the Prime Minister of Libya.

Hicks: “I think it’s the saddest phone call I’ve ever had in my life (choking up). He told me that Ambassador Stevens had passed away. I immediately telephoned Washington.”

4:00 am   Benghazi.

10:00 pm  Washington. Clinton: “I spoke with President Obama later in the evening, to bring him up to date, to hear his perspective.”

It was the only call between the two that night.  John Bolton says the Secretary of State should have been on the phone with the President constantly saying we’ve got people at risk.

10:08 pm  Washington. Clinton issues a statement. Despite the months of security warnings in Benghazi and claims of responsibility by an Al-Qaeda affiliate, Clinton issues links the attack to the anti-Mohammed Video produced by Nakoula Basseley Nakoula.

(U.S. Department of State):  “Some have sought to justify this vicious behavior as a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet. The United States deplores any intentional effort to denigrate the religious beliefs of others.”

4:45 am Benghazi.  The seven-man Tripoli response team finally leaves the Benghazi airport bound for the CIA Annex.

Panetta:  “Within 15 minutes of arriving at the Annex facility, they came under attack by mortar and rocket propelled grenades.”

Hicks:  “The accuracy was terribly precise. The first mortar round was long. The next was short.  The next three landed on the roof.  Killed Glen and Tyrone.”

Former Navy Seals, Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods become the third and fourth Americans killed in Benghazi.

Former Navy Seals, Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods become the third and fourth Americans killed in Benghazi.

Hicks, still in Tripoli, knows he must send another plane to Benghazi.  “People in Benghazi had been fighting all night. They were tired. They were exhausted.”

He ordered a special forces team led by Lieutenant Colonel Steve H. Gibson, who he told to bring “our” people home. That’s what he (Gibson) wanted to do.

Hicks: “As Colonel Gibson and his three personnel were getting in their cars, he stopped, he called  them off and told Hicks he had not been authorized to go.”

Chaffetz (?):  “How did personnel react to being called to stand down?”

Hicks:  “I will quote Lieutenant Colonel Gibson. He said this is the first time a diplomat has more balls than somebody in the Military.”

Lieutenant Colonel Gibson later told Congress they were ordered not to stand down, but to stay IN Tripoli, due to threats against Americans there.

Gibson’s boss is Africa Commander, four-star General Carter Ham who’s at the Pentagon with Panetta and Dempsey. He declined to speak with Fox News, but met with Congressman Chaffetz about the lack of military response that night.

Chaffetz: He said they had proximity and capability but were not ordered to go.

3.  Conclusion: James Rosen continues with the events of September 12th, 2012 and more on the “smokescreen”…

Update 7/23/2013:  Boehner refuses to investigate Benghazi http://nation.foxnews.com/2013/07/24/levin-boehner-cut-some-kind-deal-obama-benghazi

Obama’s Suspected Pedophile Belgium Ambassador Attacked Gov. Palin’s ‘Parenting Skills’ in ’08

This is your representation in Belgium, America.

By Stacy Drake

Follow Stacy on Twitter

Just yesterday, Doug Brady posted a story titled “Another day, another Obama Administration scandal.“ Today is no different.

Via Guy Benson at Townhall:

Did the State Department keep a known (or at least heavily suspected) pedophile on the job, try to block the investigation, then “water down” the final report? State denies any undue influence on internal probes, and the ambassador is decrying the allegations “smears.” Who is he? The New York Post unearths a name with deep financial ties to President Obama and Democrats:

A DS agent was called off a case against US Ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman over claims that he solicited prostitutes, including minors. “The ambassador’s protective detail and the embassy’s surveillance detection team . . . were well aware of the behavior.” Undersecretary of State for Management Patrick Kennedy ordered the investigation ceased, and the ambassador remains in place, according to the memo. Gutman was a big Democratic donor before taking the post, having raised $500,000 for President Obama’s 2008 campaign and helping finance his inaugural.

Why did Kennedy “order the investigation ceased”? The Post story also notes that Clinton’s Secretary of State Cheryl Mills — you remember her, too, right? — personally involved herself in a separate investigation, effectively shutting it down.

Charming behavior from Hillary’s State Department, no? They kept a man “in place,” representing our country while knowing, or at the least, “heavily” suspecting that he was a child predator. It’s disgusting.

It’s also highly ironic (and a bit disturbing) considering Ambassador Gutman’s comments about Governor Palin, back in 2008:

On the Laura Ingraham Radio show, Friday, attorney Howard Gutman — an original member of the national finance committee for Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. — very directly criticized the parenting of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin…

Gutman said the issue wasn’t one of gender, but one of parenting -– regardless of the gender of the parent.

“This has nothing to do with gender, whether Todd Palin was the nominee or Sarah Palin was the nominee,” Gutman said. “If my daughter had just come home at 17 years old and said, ‘Mom, Dad, I’m pregnant, we have a family problem,’ I wouldn’t say, ‘You know what we’re going to do? We’re going to take this private family problem…and you know what I’m going to do? I’m going to go on the international stage and broadcast this to the world.’”

Gutman continued, “this wasn’t a working mother issue, this was a parent issue…The proper attack is not that a woman shouldn’t run for vice president with five kids, it’s that a parent, when they have a family in need, a Down’s baby who needs them — mother or father.”

“So you are judging her parenting skills,” Ingraham said. “You’re saying you don’t think she’s a good parent for doing this job.”

“I’m saying the proper criticism is not that it’s a woman or man – it doesn’t matter whether it’s Todd or Sarah,” Gutman said. “Think of how many politicians have said it’s not the right time in my family’s life for me to run.”

Fast-forward to 2013 and this arbiter of “good parenting” is most likely a pervert and a pedophile. Gutman’s suspected behavior and the State Department shutting down the investigation into it, is really just par for the course with the Obama administration. In 2008, Team Hope and Change sold itself to the American people as defenders of the Constitution and the champions of civil liberties, who possessed the moral core to “to build new bridges across the globe.”

During a piece of Obama theater during the ’08 campaign, he told Europe:

Now is the time to build new bridges across the globe as strong as the one that bound us across the Atlantic. Now is the time to join together, through constant cooperation, strong institutions, shared sacrifice, and a global commitment to progress, to meet the challenges of the 21st century. It was this spirit that led airlift planes to appear in the sky above our heads, and people to assemble where we stand today. And this is the moment when our nations – and all nations – must summon that spirit anew.

What a a bunch of bull. He was lying to them the same way he lied to Americans. It was all for show. If he cared at all about “building bridges” around the world, he wouldn’t have allowed a suspected deviant like Gutman to remain stationed at one of those “strong institutions,” and there would have been a real investigation into this man’s activities.

This is your representation in Belgium, America.

(H/T: Michelle)