If you're a sane person, you might think this takes what wing there is out of the sails of the #BENGHAZI!!! "scandal":
The White House released more than 100 pages of e-mails on Wednesday in a bid to quell critics who say President Barack Obama and his aides played politics with national security following the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya.So the talking points weren't massaged to protect Hillary Clinton's reputation. And, as jonathan Bernstein notes, it's absurd to argue that any spin the White House was doing could have had any impact on the 2012 election:
The exchanges detailing discussions between top Obama administration officials from multiple agencies suggest the CIA took the lead in developing talking points to describe the attack last September 11 that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans....
You want to know what would have been a coverup? If the administration had maintained that Ambassador Chris Stevens slipped and hit his head on the sink on the way to a celebration of Libya's love for the United States (and if it then paid off those on the scene to go along with the story). In other words, trying to pretend that no policy fiasco had happened. Or if it later emerges that Osama bin Laden, alive after all, was personally leading the attack. That really would have contradicted an important campaign story line.So will Republicans just drop this now?
That it was an act of terror, instead of terrorism? That it was extremists, instead of terrorists? That it was planned or spontaneous, a reaction to an immediate event or something coordinated in advance? There’s not a single voter who would have cared at all. Not one.
Nahhhh....
BTW there are at least 25,000 docs they have but won't give us @jaketapper @cnnsitroom #benghazi
— Jason Chaffetz (@jasoninthehouse) May 15, 2013
"Release all the Benghazi Emails." For a WH that claims to want the whole story told, where's the transparency? weeklystandard.com/blogs/release-…
— Stephen Hayes (@stephenfhayes) May 14, 2013
Obama released #Benghazi emails to distract from #IRS # AP scandals. @ericbolling @greggutfeldMommy Jarrett strikes again Told Yah!
— Snipr (@SniprFire1) May 15, 2013
What is so bad about #Benghazi that Obama let the #IRS and #AP stories surface to distract us from it? #tcot #OpSLAM #ocra #p2 #uniteblue
— Greg Howard (@GregWHoward) May 15, 2013
Lt Gen Mclnerney on #Benghazi Scandal: ‘There Is Only One Person Who Can Say-Stand Down – And That’s The President’thegatewaypundit.com/2013/05/lt-gen…
—SpreadButter (@SpreadButter) May 15, 2013
Yes it's ultimately about the stand down orders.. it's unconscionable. No lying can be as bad as leaving our men to die. #Benghazi #TheFive
— Kathryn S. (@kayms99) May 15, 2013
If Barry's daughter was at the #Benghazi consulate, think there would've been a stand down? #BenghaziGate #p2 #tcot #p2moron> @herbdoom
— BarrysLies (@BarrysLies) May 15, 2013
The first two tweets above are from a right-wing congressman and a right-wing reporter. The others are from random wingnut citizens. Yeah, random citizens post all kinds of nonsense online. But the GOP is still all about stirring up the base and then pleasing the base by focusing attention on whatever ridiculous thing has been ginned up to stir up the base.
So more attention will just shift to whatever hasn't been released, and -- especially -- to the absurd notion that the president could have saved four lives and refused to do so. I don't think Republicans can restrain themselves -- they're going to keep at this.