[spence]

Originally Posted by detbuch

Well, since the memo was sent just after the Benghazi fiasco, it would stand to reason that Benghazi was at least a part of the motivation for writing it. If not, it would be an abnormally strong message. And it desperately tries to tie the "protests" to the video and not to policy as in the memo's second

At the time there were protests in response to the video, some violent, in around a half dozen countries swept up in the Arab Spring...this was a big story.

"To underscore that these protests are rooted in an internet video, and not a broader failure of policy."

Why would it be necessary to create a talking point for Susan Rice which would emphasize that it wasn't policy failure? And why be so emphatic that it was about a video when they already had much stronger evidence that it was a coordinated terrorist attack not related to the video . . . and an attack planned by Al Qaida affiliates?

The entire purpose for a document such as this is to prepare someone for hypothetical questions they *could* be asked by a media attempting to challenge the Administration's policy...

The context for the email seems to be the regional situation which was largely a response to the video, and the investigations clearly show it was the CIA who ultimately influenced the talking points.

"To convey that the United States is doing everything that we can to protect our people and facilities abroad."

Why was that talking point necessary. Haven't we always assumed that we would do everything required to protect our people? Why, if not to deflect from not having done so in Benghazi?

Again, they were trying to prepare Rice to be ready for potential lines of questioning. The embassy staff in Egypt clearly were feeling threatened by the video protest and this is something that they felt deserved being addressed.

And if the memo was not about Benghazi, why was it provided in a request through the freedom of information for Benghazi documents?

Well, that's an aspect of process. I've read that the email wasn't included in a previous request for Benghazi documents as it was assumed it wasn't specifically about Benghazi. Reading the full email rather than the snippets seems to indicate this is partially accurate. Perhaps it should have been, but I don't see anything that would indicate something substantial was withheld.

The memo was about making the administration look good in a bad situation. I understand that the purpose of talking points is mostly to do that. But when they willingly stray far from the truth to paint a picture, or the promise of a picture, of steady, successful leadership in circumstances of abject failure, they are . . . I'll let you provide the word for what they are . . . even a biased one.

Given at the time they didn't know the truth -- as Rice indicated -- I'm not sure how you could accuse them of straying from it.

Is any of the Benghazi conspiracy theory backed by evidence? Most of the systemic mistakes that were made have been long since called out.

-spence