The panel's chairman, Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, and other Republicans accuse the Barack Obama administration of stonewalling important documents and witnesses. (File Photo)
Republicans on the House Benghazi Committee faulted the Obama administration today in a report on the deadly 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya.
The panel's chairman, Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, and other Republicans accuse the Obama administration of stonewalling important documents and witnesses. Democrats say the panel's primary goal is to undermine Hillary Clinton's presidential bid.
Clinton was secretary of state during the attacks, which killed four Americans, including US Ambassador Chris Stevens.
Democrats released a report on Monday saying that while the State Department's security measures in Benghazi the night of Sept. 11, 2012 were "woefully inadequate," Clinton never personally turned down a request for additional security at the US outpost in Benghazi. Democrats said the military could not have done anything differently that night to save the lives of four Americans.
The dueling reports highlighted the partisanship of the inquiry, which has been marked by finger-pointing on both sides.
Today, the panel's Democrats denounced the Republicans' report as "a conspiracy theory on steroids - bringing back long-debunked allegations with no credible evidence whatsoever." The statement added: "Republicans promised a process and report that was fair and bipartisan, but this is exactly the opposite."
The State Department also issued a statement before the report's unveiling, saying that the "essential facts surrounding the 2012 attacks in Benghazi have been known for some time," and have been the subject of numerous reviews including that by an independent review board.
"We have made great progress towards making our posts safer since 2012," the statement said.