Hillary Clinton points out to her Republican inquisition panel, that working in American Embassies is inherently dangerous work.
She gives a brief rundown of Embassy attacks, each with other grievous loss of American lives, to her accusers who apparently have a very short recall when it comes to the history of the State Dept:
TRANSCRIPT: Hillary Clinton takes responsibility for Benghazi attack, defends actions in emotional testimony before Congress
New York Daily News -- Jan 23, 2013
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First, the terrorist attacks in Benghazi that claimed the lives of four brave Americans -- Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty -- are part of a broader strategic challenge to the United States and our partners in North Africa. I think it’s important we understand the context for this challenge as we work together to protect our people and honor our fallen colleagues.
Any clear-eyed examination of this matter must begin with this sobering fact: Since 1988, there have been 19 Accountability Review Boards investigating attacks on American diplomats and their facilities. Since 1977, 65 American diplomatic personnel have been killed by terrorists. In addition to those who have been killed, we know what happened in Tehran with hostages being taken in 1979, our Embassy and Marine barracks bombed in Beirut in 1983, Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996, our embassies in East Africa in 1998, consulate staff murdered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 2004, the Khost attack in Afghanistan in 2009, and too many others.
But I also want to stress the list of attacks that were foiled, crises averted, and lives saved is even longer. We should never forget that the security professionals get it right more than 99 percent of the time, against difficult odds, because the terrorists only need to get it right once. That’s why, like all my predecessors, I trust the Diplomatic Security professionals with my life.
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Despite the inherent risks involved, Secretary of State implicitly trusts those Diplomatic Security professionals -- even with her own life.
Makes you wonder who is it that a GOP-ranter would trust ... ? Their Lobbyist's Limo driver, maybe.
Hillary Clinton also pointed out some other recent history, to her Republican Budget-slashing accusers -- remember Congress exactly who it is that funds those requests for increased security services to protect Embassy personnel ... and who it was that denied those requests.
Here's a hint: their initials are G.O.P.
Hillary Clinton answers questions about Benghazi, Libya attack, says US strengthening embassy security
abc.local -- Jan 23, 2013
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In her last formal testimony before Congress as America's top diplomat -- but perhaps not her last time on the political stage -- Clinton once again took responsibility for the department's missteps and failures leading up to the assault. But she also said that requests for more security at the diplomatic mission in Benghazi didn't reach her desk, and reminded lawmakers that they have a responsibility to fund security-related budget requests.
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Some Democrats raised the point that Congress had cut funding for embassy security.
"We have to get our act together," she told the panels, chiding House GOP members for recently stripping $1 billion in security aid from the hurricane relief bill and the Senate panel for failing for years to produce an spending authorization bill.
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Of course,
cutting funds to those in need -- is nothing new to the GOP.
You might say that's their hallmark -- that's what they stand for.
-- You know them, that "Damn the Torpedoes" party. Fallout, what fallout?
That's somebody else's problem, to pick up their budget-cutting pieces ...