For Barack Obama, Is Libya All About Politics?

Earlier today, President Obama’s deputy campaign director, Stephanie Cutter, revealed what the Obama administration really thinks about the disaster in Libya: its only importance is political. This was Cutter’s exchange with CNN’s Brooke Baldwin:

STEPHANIE CUTTER: In terms of the politicization of this — you know, we are here at a debate, and I hope we get to talk about the debate — but the entire reason this has become the political topic it is, is because of Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan. It’s a big part of their stump speech. And it’s reckless and irresponsible what they’re doing.

BROOKE BALDWIN: But, Stephanie, this is national security. As we witnessed this revolution last year, we covered it–

CUTTER: It is absolutely national security–

BALDWIN: –it is absolutely pertinent. People in the American public absolutely have a right to get answers.

So no one would be concerned about the murder of an American ambassador, the first since the Carter administration, and three others, along with the destruction of an American consulate and attacks on multiple embassies, if Romney and Ryan weren’t talking about it? And cavalier lying about important issues of national security would be of no significance if Mitt Romney didn’t point it out. That evidently is what the Obama campaign thinks. But for those pesky Republicans, the whole thing could be swept under the rug, no one would be the wiser, and Obama’s foreign policy could stumble along as ineffectively as ever for another four years. Well, that would be fine with the New York Times. But most Americans want to know why it is open season on our diplomatic personnel.

UPDATE: Romney responded forcefully to the administration’s effort to pretend that Libya is all about politics:

I think today we got another indication of how President Obama and his campaign fail to grasp the seriousness of the challenges that we face here in America. His campaign said this today about the Benghazi terrorist attack. They said this, and I quote, ‘The entire reason this has become the political topic it is, is because of Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.’ No, President Obama, it’s an issue because this is the first time in thirty-three years that a United States Ambassador has been assassinated. Mr. President, this is an issue because we were attacked successfully by terrorists on the anniversary of 9/11. President Obama, this is an issue because Americans wonder why it was it took so long for you and your administration to admit that this was a terrorist attack. This is a very serious issue. These are very serious questions and the American people deserve serious answers. And I hope they come soon.

Good for him.

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