Republican And Democratic Congressmen Get Into Heated Debate Over Upcoming Benghazi Attack Hearing
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), a member of the House Oversight Committee admitted that initial talking points from the Obama administration about the attacks had been "false."
"It was scrubbed, it was totally inaccurate, and there's no excuse for that," Lynch said on "Fox News Sunday" with Chris Wallace. "It was false information."
But Lynch blamed fellow Republicans on the Oversight Committee for a "one-sided" and political approach to the aftermath of the attack, saying Republicans have kept Democrats on the committee in the dark. Lynch also blasted Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) for hypocrisy, noting he voted against additional funding for embassy security.
"When Secretary Clinton and the State Department asked for additional funding for embassy security, they all voted no. They all voted no," Lynch said.
"No, no, no," Chaffetz said.
"They’re complaining about a lack of security at the embassies after they voted against funding for security at the embassies. Is that not related?"
Chaffetz pushed back, saying that funding had "nothing to do" with the lapse of security at the embassy.
Chaffetz also said that newly revealed witnesses at Wednesday's scheduled Benghazi hearing will provide new information on the security lapses at the embassy. He also charged that some Benghazi witnesses have "felt intimidation" from the Obama administration.
When Wallace challenged Chaffetz and asked him to name a witness that has felt intimidation, he dodged the question and broadly answered that "more than one" have expressed such feelings.
In response, Lynch said that none of the attorneys of the witnesses has requested any information about the attack.
"The only reason they haven't received information is that they haven't asked for it yet," Lynch said. "There has not been a request for documents from these attorneys to the State Department."
Watch some clips of the exchanges below: