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Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton weighs in on administration's handling of crisis
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-- big story now the Obama administration is still standing by its account they quote spontaneous.
Deadly attack.
On the US consulate in Libya.
Despite the claims -- sources on the ground and from the Libyan government that -- assault was absolutely.
A planned attack.
Here is US ambassador Susan Rice.
In the best information in the best assessment we have today.
Is that in fact this was not a pre planned premeditated.
Attack.
That what happened initially was it it was a spontaneous.
Reaction to what had just transpired in Cairo.
-- as a consequence of the video.
Bid for Latin people gathered outside the embassy and then it's it grew very violent and those with extremist ties it.
Join the fray and came with heavy weapons which unfortunately are quite common in in post revolutionary.
Libya and and that then spun out of control.
So it is not -- Everything else that we're hearing from the president of Libya on board.
John Bolton joins me now former US ambassador to the UN he's also -- Fox News contributor good morning ambassador good to have you here.
Good morning Martha glad to be with you you know I mean.
You look at you know sort of person these words but but it doesn't matter in terms of understanding.
What's going -- in the Middle East.
India's capitals in in these major cities because that report was that there was no significant demonstration going on.
Outside that consulate area in Benghazi says she's making it sound as if these extremists who were heavily armed came in and -- an ongoing big demonstration.
That got whipped into a frenzy and led to this attack.
Right well obviously there's still a lot of facts to be learned we don't know everything yet but you know there's one group of people who are not at all confused by what happened and those -- the people who attacked the consulate and killed four Americans.
They know what they plan did what they did and even worse than that as tragic as this is.
Is the signal that it's sending to al-Qaeda and terrorists and extremist all around the region which is.
That we did not have adequate security for our ambassador to Libya we didn't have adequate security for our embassy in Cairo on September the eleventh.
And that official Americans and private Americans are vulnerable Tunisia is a good example when they.
Couldn't really take over the embassy they stormed a school across the street they couldn't get the hard target so they -- after it's a soft target and I think this is very serious the idea that the State Department.
That put out last Friday that they're not gonna talk about what happened in.
Bad guys anymore is just brought Americans have a right to know what the security situation is for our people in the Middle East.
And in ways it goes -- back to sort of how you look at what's going -- Whether or not there is an ongoing war on terror whether or not the attacks that it happened in a similar smaller things in Benghazi should have.
Triggered a higher sense of security it in those buildings.
Well they're resided there and intelligence failure both in Libya and in Egypt although different circumstances.
War.
As you suggest the administration has viewed the environment and so benign that they weren't worried.
-- that's consistent with -- president's argument that the war on terror is basically over.
General Motors is alive Osama bin Laden is dead but you know we now have the tragedy of four dead Americans that give the lie to that fast -- line.
And I think it's something that that we need to focus on because the administration's worldview has been sadly proven very wrong here.
Yet -- you know I mean it do we -- should we expect.
Sort of a more outspoken statement on all of this from the president you look at what's going on in southeast Asia and Tunisia.
And -- in so many of these countries and it feels like it's it's been chalked up to this movie -- -- about the movie had some role in terms of you know whipping up it out a frenzy.
Among some people in the streets but.
But need this dude does he need to address is more had -- Yeah I but I see I think that contradicts another approach that he's taken ever since the famous Cairo speech of 2009.
That if we're just.
Sort of engage in a little sensitivity training for Americans that everything will be fine in the region and that's simply not right these extremists.
Religious and political beliefs have deep roots their hatred for America and the west as a whole.
Had deep roots in the pretext for the movie.
That was just used as a propaganda tool if you can't get the chain of causation -- -- what the problem is.
Obviously you cannot formulate effective American policy to deal with -- and right now -- after the statements.
Initially following September the eleventh.
We haven't heard anything from the president I don't understand why Hillary Clinton honestly.
Wasn't on the talk shows on.
Sunday with all due respect to my successor Susan Rice.
Is not exactly in the UN ambassadors wheel house where was the secretary of state and by the way.
What are we doing now to impress on governments all over the world we expect that our people will be protected.
Good points on both in terms of our ambassadors and staff in all of these countries we saw evacuations over the weekend in Tunisia.
I should they feel safe should they feel protected should they feel as if they're on the same lion with the folks in Washington.
Well I think I think they've obviously got to be on high alert we saw the government of the Sudan rejected.
The deployment of a marine anti terrorism team that had hit that resulted in our embassy there being drawn down to essential personnel.
You have to look at it case by case but clearly the signal to the terrorist is they can attack.
And succeed against people outside the embassy compounds and so the risk for the official Americans -- high but I want to underline again.
The official -- the risk for private American citizens is also high and I think we've got a real obligation.
So that they know what the security situation is in the countries there -- Companies and families have to decide that they want their employees and relatives over there what steps are they going to take to provide for their security.
But we're gonna see more tragedies or or hostage takings -- or the white potentially all around the region.
Over a sustained period of time demonstrations may go -- they may go down you may have quiet days or weeks but this underlying problem remains where.
And thank you ambassador and and next year we're looking at images that.
We haven't seen so consistently and so many countries in in so many years of burning of flags in Pakistan.
I've -- -- on top of American flags on the ground in Pakistan in these pictures.
It's very disturbing ambassador thank you as always for being with us today.
Thank you -- him.
