House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa released the Secretary of State from a subpoena to testify before a committee investigating the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, alleging Kerry was attempting to “distract” from the panel’s work.
Rep. Issa, (R-Calif.), said Kerry agreed to appear before the
Oversight and Government Reform panel on June 12 as a means to
avoid testifying before a later scheduled Select Committee panel.
The congressional committees have been called to investigate the
September 11, 2012 attack on the US diplomatic mission, which led
to the death of four Americans, including US Ambassador to Libya
J. Christopher Stevens.
Issa said he was forced to release Kerry from testifying.
"It’s been disappointing to watch a long serving former
senator, like Secretary Kerry, squirm his way to what I’m doing
today - releasing him from the upcoming hearing commitment he
made only after we issued him a subpoena," Issa said in a
statement.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, Republicans were anxious to
label the event a terrorist attack, with possible connections to
Al-Qaeda, while the Obama administration explained the assault as
a spontaneous reaction to an anti-Islam film, Innocence of
Muslims, which cast the Prophet Muhammad in an unfavorable
light.
However, the day after the attack, Barack Obama told reporters at
the White House that Benghazi was an “act of terror.”
Republicans believe that President Barack Obama’s administration
hushed up details of the Benghazi tragedy to protect his
re-election campaign. Democrats accuse the Republicans of
spinning the investigation to score political points ahead of the
November mid-term elections.
The game of partisan politics, meanwhile, continues as the
Republicans accuse the Democrats of stonewalling a proper
investigation into the events of the attack, which include the
release of communications and other documents related to the
event.
“In attempting to cover up documents like the September-14
email from Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, President
Obama, Secretary Kerry, and other officials have no one but
themselves to blame for the increased scrutiny they should soon
expect,” Issa said.
The Republican from California had twice subpoenaed Kerry to
testify about emails and other files that the Obama
administration had released to congressional investigators.
Kerry told the Oversight committee he would be willing to testify
in June, and Issa agreed.
Later, White House officials explained that if Kerry testified
before the House Oversight committee, there would be no need for
him to appear before the Select Committee, which promises to be a
more active investigation into the actions of the Obama
administration before, during and after the Benghazi attack.
"While Speaker [John] Boehner and I had both originally
concluded that Secretary Kerry needed to promptly testify and
explain why his department had withheld subpoenaed documents,
neither of us immediately recognized how opponents of
congressional oversight would use this as an opportunity to
distract from the select committee's effort," Issa said.
Issa expressed frustration with Obama’s officials, charging them
with attempting to “distract” from the investigative work of the
committee.
“Seeing Secretary Kerry and others, who have worked to
obstruct critical oversight of Congress’ investigations into
Benghazi, attempt to use the upcoming June-12 hearing as a shield
against the Select Committee tells me it’s time to
reassess,” Issa said.
Issa seemed ready to pass the baton to the Select Committee,
headed by Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., which was opened following the
investigative work of the Oversight panel.
“No matter how long the investigation of a terrorist attack
that killed four Americans takes, getting the full truth is what
matters,” he said. “The Select Committee is the House of
Representatives’ commitment to getting this truth.”
“It will conduct its investigation in the face of an
all-hands-on-deck effort by defenders of the principal actors to
further obscure the facts.”