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Watch the ‘FOX News Sunday' panel, Brit Hume, Bob Woodward, Laura Ingraham and Jeff Zeleny, as they discuss Libya, in our web exclusive Panel Plus
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And welcome to FOX News Sunday panel plus with a Brit Hume Bob what word Laura Ingram and just colony we're gonna continue our conversation.
About -- the attack there.
The decisions were made a forehand about security the statements that were made after one of the things that Laura brought up and I want to ask our two main stream.
-- veterans about this is the question of coverage because one thing that struck me -- start with you.
There was that an extraordinary briefing by the State Department on Tuesday night.
They did a conference call and at which they laid out a timeline for the first time of exactly what happened.
And in that they they laid out the fact that.
-- ambassador Chris Stephenson going out in the street with a Turkish diplomat after meeting with them and 830 that night it said goodbye to him the diplomat got endless car.
I was gonna get to that -- And set up and that it was all quiet nothing's going on at 930 the terrorists come over the walls.
I look at your paper and I looked -- jerk paper they -- that front page stories that they were political stories that does the story in the Wall Street in the Washington Post was.
Is this gonna stay in the Clinton legacy the story in your paper was about the -- -- -- was Republican and democratic back and forth why not covered this extraordinary revelation.
The spontaneous protest there never was one.
Yes I agree and in I think you it was amiss focus the substantial one.
And in need you know in addressing this.
This specific question and all questions about campaign coverage I mean I think it's too much polls too much the politics of it.
In not the document's not the needy -- di di tale because in the end we all know it's the nitty gritty di di tale that tells the real story and I think there is such a tendency.
20 let's go deal with the politics of it or find some angle I know that this might stained Hillary Clinton's legacy.
You know it it.
Get to the doesn't necessarily have to be on the lawn but you know brits raise the question of serious question about Susan Rice people should ask her and have her answer the question what did she know and when did -- know.
Well let me let me ask you because lower -- that you know we do this thought experiment and frankly I do it both ways because and as I think it can work the other way.
Do you think that if this involved.
The bush administration and Scooter Libby and Vice President Cheney.
The reaction from the Washington Post in the New York Times would have been different you might have been and that's you know that it depends on who the reporter is in -- the -- -- is the editor is wise.
In fact driven.
Will have better coverage and then it you know that when they do political story or stories that are off the -- tax.
It's because people are being lazy well all right Jeff let me ask you because there was actually a controversy within the New York Times.
Because that was one big development and it was not on the front page and the public editor in effect the ombudsman for the times.
Raised a stink about it this idea you're not covering the story sufficiently.
And I think rightly so I -- I think it was.
A very important congressional -- -- the front page is one of those things that.
I'm actually -- the people still talking about and care what's on the front page but the reality is that story was on the front page of the website.
And that apps and all these other things I mean more people sought because it was on the web sit in on the front page but it it is this indication of of significance and and seriousness I think if you look at the stream as the entire.
Breath of coverage we've had a lot of coverage on -- but I think Bob's absolutely right that this is one of those times when reality check kind of comes into the campaign.
And that's what happened on the ground.
In it's been does he is more important than the politics of the moment.
And it is sort of getting confused a little bit here.
And I think that it's incumbent on all of us to keep looking for the answers the question which are going to go on well beyond November 6 misses is not a story that ends on November 6 I've seen some people college investigate.
I think.
That's probably the wrong way to look at it no offense well.
I think that you know this is a serious situation it's not them -- what's happening on the ground there is a real problem it was an al-Qaeda strike.
And that's -- not just what happened on the group we're getting some good reporting from a lot of media outlets now what happened.
It's also what happened here.
That led to the stories that we're told for weeks -- for a week and more by some officials.
About the event.
We know it is axiomatic and when Washington and it's not -- than the original mishap mistake screw up didn't get you.
It's the cover up.
And there is an unmistakable sense here that something was being covered up that the administration did not want dope it out.
That they had a major security intelligence intelligence failure reflecting a bad policy in the Middle East that left -- so vulnerable to this attack.
And so it was blamed on this video and spontaneous outbursts and so forth.
And as has been pointed out here -- the president was still talking about it in his UN speech and on talk shows and be on long after we knew.
That Ben Ghazi had nothing to do that video all of this.
It seems to me.
Leads to the second track of the story which I think you've been poorly covered well that's what we get to you -- I promise I -- You know serendipity sometimes it's got to be lucky than good we happened -- house.
Mr.
Watergate Bob Woodward here your reaction to what protests that I had -- -- get on the ground reporter.
Maybe all of us should go to Susan Rice is -- -- after the show is over for.
Call or are they are not children adore her in her friendly way saying we want to listen to what went up.
I do you know.
What we all know I know from four decades of this you can have a cover up you can him the most -- -- -- Behavior once you find out in at the same time you can have an accident or somebody now knowing something not connecting it again.
I go -- to the question of the president's performance on this that is the issue not.
Susan Rice but what did the president do what is his instinct.
When something like this occurs when he hung in there you have but that there is a sense and -- and look you have with the ambassador killed.
You have to take that with the utmost seriousness and the president's to -- -- what happened we -- Clearly early on they had country addictions and so you.
Get -- out also.
I would go back to that document seven months ago and look at the policy who set that policy was the White House involved -- that policy.
The idea.
I'm trying to normalize security arrangements.
In a place that is is violent and unstable was Libya makes no sense.
-- it took weeks for -- FBI to arrive on the scene because the situation was described -- so volatile and unstable.
We had other news organizations.
Able to find the ambassadors journal we still really don't know what completely was and that -- There are some great British reporting Don and -- in the immediate hours following a -- -- attack.
Daily Telegraph -- daily independent BBC and all I can say is this is why people are so cynical about the American press today.
I think it's a shame I think there's a great role for the press to play be a watchdog of both parties and government in general.
There's not a political story this is a security story that could have been followed by a politicized.
Approach to telling the truth of what they know as Bob said they might not about all the answers right away.
But that just tell the American people we don't know but it would be nice to see the president.
As angry as the parents of these individuals who were killed in the -- members the president should be angry.
He was failed if indeed this was a State Department blunder.
Or it became political and I -- met.
I'd like to know Susan Rice talked to anyone directly or indirectly from the Obama campaign.
Thank you panel.
The -- two over there please let us know what you think about all -- check with -- with us throughout the week.
But for my Monday edition of Wallace unplugging confront it right here at FOX News Sunday dot com.
We'll see you back here next.
