US committee investigating the Benghazi attack
The United States House Select Committee on Events Surrounding the 2012 Terrorist Attack in Benghazi was created after Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner, on May 2, 2014, proposed that a House select committee would be formed to further investigate the Benghazi attack on September 11, 2012. During the attack, the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, was attacked, resulting in the deaths of the U.S. ambassador to that country, J. Christopher Stevens, and three other Americans.
On May 8, 2014, the House voted 232–186 to establish the select committee, with 225 Republicans and 7 Democrats in favor, and 186 Democrats voting against. The chairman of the committee was Representative Trey Gowdy from South Carolina. It was the last of six investigations conducted by Republican-controlled House committees. The committee closed on December 12, 2016, after issuing its final report.
Background.
Frank Wolf, Republican from Virginia, introduced House Resolution (H.Res.) 36 on January 18, 2013, with 192 co-sponsoring House members, to establish a "select committee to investigate and report on the attack on the United States consulate in Benghazi, Libya." On May 22, 2013, Speaker Boehner, Republican from Ohio, resisted calls to create one saying: "I don't think at this point in time that it's necessary." He remained confident the five House committees investigating Benghazi—the Armed Services Committee, Foreign Affairs Committee, Intelligence Committee, Judiciary Committee and Oversight and Government Reform Committee—were sufficient and that there was no reason to set up a fifth committee, saying "At this point in time I see no reason to break up all the work that's been done and to take months and months and months to create some select committee."
In late April 2014, Judicial Watch—a conservative activist group that describes itself as an "educational foundation" concerned with "transparency, accountability and integrity in government"—made public previously-unreleased White House emails showing administration adviser Ben Rhodes coordinating a public response strategy after the attack for then-United Nations ambassador for the U.S., Susan E. Rice, recommending she emphasize the attack was "rooted in an Internet video, and not a broader failure of policy." The email was part of materials, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, that were more comprehensive than those the White House had given congressional panels. A person whom "Roll Call" identified as a "senior GOP leadership aide" stated that this had been "the straw that broke the camel's back" for Boehner.
Frustrated with what he considered "stonewalling" from the White House, Boehner proposed creation of the special committee May 2, 2014. He stated: "it's clear that questions remain, and the administration still does not respect the authority of Congress to provide proper oversight. This dismissiveness and evasion requires us to elevate the investigation to a new level." A growing battle for control of Benghazi investigations between existing House committees may also have been a factor in Boehner's decision to create the select committee. The resolution that passed and created the select committee was generally similar to, but not the same as, the original H.Res. 36. Only seven Democrats "broke ranks" to vote with the majority party to establish the select committee: Ron Barber of Arizona, John Barrow of Georgia, Mike McIntyre of North Carolina, Patrick Murphy of Florida, Collin Peterson of Minnesota, Nick Rahall of West Virginia, and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona. The Democratic National Committee sent out a statement describing the committee as a "ploy" and "political stunt."
Following passage, on May 12 Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas requested that the US Senate agree to form a joint select committee on the matter with the House. The suggestion was quickly rejected in the Senate, which unlike the House was under Democratic control. Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican from South Carolina and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, had said in November 2012 that Congress should form a special committee—like it had for the Watergate and Iran–Contra scandals—to investigate what happened before, during and after the Benghazi attack. On May 15, 2014, he joined 36 other Republican senators calling on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to establish a related select committee, saying: "Congressional oversight is crucial to understanding what happened before, during, and after the attacks, so we can be sure we do everything in our power to prevent future attacks."
On May 23, current Secretary of State John Kerry said he would appear before the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, in response to a second subpoena,or to "answer questions regarding the Department's response to Congressional investigations of the Benghazi attacks". In response to the State Department's insistence this would be a "one-and-done" appearance, meaning Kerry would not also appear before the select committee, a spokesperson for Boehner said: "We're glad Secretary Kerry will appear at Oversight. Whether he will also be asked appear before the Select Committee will be a decision for Chairman Gowdy in the future." Issa changed course a week later, releasing Kerry from the subpoena, thus nullifying State Department stated concerns about availability of the secretary for a select committee hearing.
Members during the 113th and 114th Congress.
Speaker Boehner named the six remaining members of the Select Committee on the Events Surrounding the 2012 Terrorist Attack in Benghazi on May 9, 2014. Trey Gowdy had been announced as chair earlier, the 49-year-old, former 16-year federal prosecutor being well-regarded among House conservatives. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, announced on May 21, 2014, she was naming five members of her caucus to serve on the panel, with Elijah Cummings of Maryland the ranking member.
Gowdy was a member of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee and a former federal and local prosecutor. Roby was the chair of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, and led that committee's investigation into military activities during the events in Benghazi. She is a former lawyer. Roskam was chief deputy Republican whip when the committee was formed, making him the fourth-ranking House Republican behind Boehner. Westmoreland was a member of the House Intelligence Committee. Brooks is a former U.S. attorney, Jordan has a J.D. degree, and Pompeo is a former lawyer.
Of the minority members, Cummings was the ranking Democrat on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Smith the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, and Schiff a member of the Intelligence Committee. Sánchez was the ranking member of the House Ethics Committee and a former member of the Intelligence Committee, while Duckworth was a member of the Armed Services and Oversight &amp; Government Reform Committees. She was also the only combat veteran who was wounded during the Iraq War.
In his first personnel move, Gowdy selected Philip Kiko as majority chief of staff—a former aide to James Sensenbrenner, Republican from Wisconsin, when he was chair of the House Judiciary Committee.
Minority participation question.
House Democrats did not immediately commit to participating in the Benghazi attack investigation select committee. Aides for Boehner and Pelosi engaged in discussions over how the committee would operate, points of contention being shared authority to issue subpoenas, interview witnesses, and determine what can be released to the public. When she finally made the decision that her party would participate in the committee investigation, Pelosi acknowledged: "I could have argued this either way. Why give any validity to this effort?"
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It's a hunting mission for a lynch mob actually, I think that's what's going on. There have been four major reports, we spent a year and a half on a report. We held hearings, thousands of pages were reviewed, the staff spent hours and weeks on it.
—Dianne Feinstein, Democrat from California, chair Senate Intelligence Committee
Previously Boehner denied Democratic demands for equal representation on the 12-member panel, broken out 7–5 for the majority party. The percentage of Democrats on the select committee was about the same as on the aggregated four committees previously involved in Benghazi investigations and hearings.
In a letter Pelosi sent to Boehner May 9, 2014, referring to the related House Oversight and Government Reform Committee investigation under chair Darrell Issa, she stated: "Regrettably, the proposal does not prevent the unacceptable and repeated abuses by committed by ["sic"] Chairman Issa in any meaningful way, and we find it ultimately unfair."
Schiff, calling the establishment of a select committee to investigate the 2012 attack a "colossal waste of time," stated Democratic leaders should not appoint any members, stating: "I think it's just a tremendous red herring and a waste of taxpayer resources." Rosa DeLauro, Democrat from Connecticut, pushed her party to appoint a single representative, believing: "Such a participant could maintain Democratic access to committee proceedings and material, question witnesses, monitor the House Majority's activities and provide a powerful voice to raise issues and make appropriate public comments." By some reports, supporters of Hillary Clinton—Secretary of State at the time of the attacks, and possible presidential candidate in 2016—urged Democrats to participate fully in the committee to better counteract possible Republican criticism of her.
When on May 21 Pelosi decided to name a full slate of Democrats to the committee, she argued that by selecting senior legislators—most of whom had already been engaged in investigations of the Benghazi attacks—Democrats could have a say in access to pertinent documents and determining the direction of the committee's investigation. Pelosi stated that participation would allow Democrats "to be there to fight for a fair hearing and process, to try to bring some openness and transparency to what's going on." Reacting to the minority appointments to the committee, Gowdy commented: "The ones that I know well are very thoughtful and very smart, and I have a great working relationship with them."
Investigation and report.
The expected focus of the investigation by the select committee is on events before, during, and after the actual attack. In particular, the resolution passed by the House states that the scope of the Select Committee's investigation include, but not be limited to:
The panel has been assigned a budget of $3.3 million for this investigation and related hearings, which were expected to begin in September 2014, "after members return from the August recess."
Hearings.
The first hearing was held on September 17, 2014, two years after the attack and four months after the launch of the special investigation. The panel focused on what the administration has done to improve security at U.S. embassies and other diplomatic missions globally, calling Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security Gregory Starr, and security experts Todd Keil and Mark Sullivan who had served on a "State Department independent panel."
In December 2014, Committee Chairman Gowdy announced hearings would be held in January, February, and March the following the year. During that timeframe, a single January hearing was held, interviewing State Department legislative liaison Joel Rubin and CIA representative Neil Higgins. An announced hearing to be focused on explaining the State Department's presence in Benghazi was not held. In February, Gowdy notified ranking Democratic committee member Elijah Cummings that the committee would begin interviewing a list of twenty prominent members of the Obama administration in April. This would include Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey, former White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, and former State Department Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills. Gowdy said on Fox News that April that the committee had gone from interviewing two witnesses a week to four. According to a Democrat committee aide, however, the committee had not conducted four interviews within a week at any point and a committee staff member said none of Gowdy's list of twenty Obama administration members had been interviewed.
Prior to interviewing longtime Clinton confidante Sidney Blumenthal on June 16, Gowdy told "Politico" that the committee had partly shifted focus from investigating the actual attack in Benghazi to reviewing policy decisions made by Clinton regarding Libya prior to the attack: "They believe we're supposed to be Benghazi-centered, looking at a couple of days on either side of the Benghazi attacks. But the language of the [House] resolution is pretty clear: We're to examine all policies and decisions that led to the attacks."
As of June 20, 2015, the Committee had conducted three hearings and interviewed 29 witnesses, substantially fewer than previous investigations such as that of the Iran–Contra scandal, which held 40 days of public hearings with 500 witness interviews over 10 1/2 months.
Of the committee's lack of progress, Cummings said, in mid-2015, "After a full year, it now seems obvious that this investigation