Two bombshell accusations came out of the first part of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's testimony before the House Benghazi Committee on Thursday: Clinton lied to the American people about the true cause of the Sept. 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, and displayed a lack of interest in Libya in 2012 at the time Ambassador Chris Stevens was pleading for increased security.
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, introduced emails that show then-Secretary of State Clinton telling family, the Libyan government and the Egyptian prime minister that the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya was a terrorist act, reported The Hill.
"We know that the attack in Libya had nothing to do with the film. It was a planned attack, not a protest," Clinton wrote to the Egyptian prime minister the night of the attack, according to Town Hall.
However, at the same time, the Obama administration was telling the American public that an Internet video - "The Innocence of Muslims" - sparked spontaneous protests that got out of control and resulted in the attack, which killed four Americans including Ambassador Chris Stevens.
"You can tell the Egyptian prime minister it's a terrorist attack, but you can't tell your own people," Jordan said to Clinton. "You knew the truth and that's not what the American people got."
Jordan noted that there was no evidence of a spontaneous protest in Benghazi and accused Clinton of crafting the false narrative in order to help President Obama win reelection in 2012, according to The Columbus Dispatch.
"Libya was supposed to be a great success story for the Obama administration," he said. "At 10:08, on the night of the attack, you released this statement, 'Some have sought to justify the vicious behavior as a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet.' At 10:08, with no evidence, at 10:08, before the attack is over, at 10:08, when Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty are still on the roof of the annex, fighting for their lives, the official statement of the State Department blames a video."
"So if there's no evidence for a video-inspired protest, then where did the false narrative start?" Jordan asked, adding, "It started with you, Madam Secretary."
On a separate issue, Rep. Susan Brooks, R-Ind., confronted Clinton with two piles of emails, saying as she pulled out the stacks of paper, "I'd love to show you something."
Brooks said that one pile included all emails that Clinton sent or received about Libya in 2011, about 795 emails, including "daily updates, sometimes hourly updates" from her staff about Benghazi and Ambassador Chris Stevens.
The second pile contained only 67 emails that Clinton sent or received about Libya from early 2012 until the deadly September attack.
In that time frame, Ambassador Chris Stevens had pleaded with Clinton's State Department for increased security out of fear of an attack, but Stevens' request was ignored and the State Department actually reduced security.
"I am troubled by what I see here," Brooks said. "We know from talking to your senior advisers that they knew to send you important information."
"I can only conclude by your own records that there was a lack of interest in Libya in 2012," Brooks added.
Watch Clinton respond below:
