Democrats: Hillary Clinton willing to testify before Benghazi panel
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has agreed to testify before the House committee investigating the 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi â setting up what could be an explosive hearing for the likely 2016 presidential candidate. Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the panel, told reporters Tuesday that Clinton had informed him she was willing to testify as early as December 2014 before the panel. Cummings said he reached out to Clinton during the early days of the panelâs investigation in September at the request for committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.). Story Continued Below âShe immediately said she would do that and she wanted to come in December and then she said, âWell, if you canât have me in December Iâll come in January.â She said â¦ âIâll do it, period,ââ Cummings said. A spokeswoman for Gowdy said he was ânot aware of any formal notice that she would [testify], just â¦ Cummingsâ statement at the press stakeout after the hearing.â Gowdy has long expressed an interest in hearing from Clinton, who ran the State Department when the 2012 attacks at the Benghazi compound occurred. The Democratic aide said Clinton âagreed to testify as early as this past Decemberâ but has not been officially called to testify. Any appearance from Clinton is sure to set off controversy. Conservatives have long pointed to the Benghazi attacks to argue that Clinton is not up to the job as commander-in-chief, and any remarks she made during the hearing would be sure to be used against her during a presidential run. Democrats have dismissed the Republican interest in Clinton as partisan politics meant to distract their partyâs likely 2016 nominee. Gowdy reiterated on Tuesday that he would like to hear from Clinton but said the panel needed additional documents from the State Department before he would ask her to appear. The State Department has sent the Benghazi panel more than 40,000 documents â including 15,000 never previously sent to Congress â but Gowdy and House Republicans have dozens of standing requests. Clinton has previously testified before House and Senate panels investigating the Benghazi attacks, including a memorable exchange with Sen. Ron Johnson in 2013 over the White Houseâs response to the siege in the days after Sept. 11, 2012. âWith all due respect, the fact is, we had four dead Americans. Was it because of a protest or because of guys out for a walk one night who decide to kill some Americans â what difference at this point does it make?â Clinton said. âIt is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, Senator.â