Subject: Reid: Republicans Should Disband Disgraceful Benghazi Committee
From: "Carnegie, Ruth (Reid)" <[email-masked]>
To: "[email-masked]" <[email-masked]>
Cc: "Cruz, Adelle (Reid)" <[email-masked]>, "[email-masked]" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 14:11:14 +0000

Good morning,

Senator Reid asked that we share his enclosed remarks with you.

Thank you.

Ruth

Ruth Carnegie
Special Assistant
HARRY REID
United States Senate Democratic Leader
Office: (202) 224-2158
Fax: (202) 224-7362

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For Immediate Release
Date: Wednesday, October 7, 2015

CONTACT: Kristen Orthman, (202) 224-2939

Reid: Republicans Should Disband Disgraceful Benghazi Committee

"House Republicans have used the tragic deaths of four Americans as political fodder to win elections. Don't the victims deserve better? Don't the families deserve to not have their deceased loved ones pulled into a political inquisition?"

"And what have they achieved after all that time and money? What have they accomplished for the American people? Nothing. They've only held three hearings in seventeen months. Not one American is safer today because of the Benghazi Select Committee. Not one terrorist attack has been thwarted because of the committee's work."

"This committee's only real objective was to hurt Hillary Clinton politically - exactly as Congressman McCarthy said. And the evidence makes that clear. In seventeen months the committee has interviewed or deposed eight Clinton campaign staffers. They're obsessed with Hillary Clinton and her campaign staffers. ... Until House Republicans do the right thing and disband the committee, I will continue to tell the American people about the disgrace that is House Republicans' Benghazi Committee."

Washington, D.C. - Nevada Senator Harry Reid delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor calling on House Republicans to disband the politically motivated Benghazi Select Committee. Below are his remarks:

It's been a week since it happened, but the American people are still reeling from House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy's admission that the so-called Benghazi Select Committee is nothing more than a political hit job on Hillary Clinton.   Speaking about the Benghazi Committee, Congressman McCarthy told Fox News:

"Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable, right? But we put together a Benghazi special committee, a select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping."

Of course he went on to say more, but it doesn't take much to figure out the point he was making. According to Mr. McCarthy, the so-called Benghazi Select Committee was orchestrated with one goal in mind: to weaken Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. Of course that is shameful. House Republicans have used the tragic deaths of four Americans as political fodder to win elections. Don't the victims deserve better? Don't the families deserve to not have their deceased loved ones pulled into a political inquisition?

Even more shocking is that this political farce continues now. And House Republicans are showing no signs of bringing this wasteful charade to an end.  Consider these facts:

-              Already Republicans have spent 4.6 million taxpayer dollars on the so-called Benghazi Select Committee. And that number continues to climb as I speak.

-              The Select Committee has investigated Hillary Clinton for seventeen months. That's five-hundred and seventeen days - longer than the investigations of Pearl Harbor, the Kennedy Assassination, Iran-Contra affair and even Watergate.

And what have they achieved after all that time and money? What have they accomplished for the American people? Nothing. They've only held three hearings in seventeen months. Not one American is safer today because of the Benghazi Select Committee. Not one terrorist attack has been thwarted because of the committee's work. And Republicans are fine with that. They hail the Benghazi Committee as a success. Because it was never the panel's intention to get to the truth.

This committee's only real objective was to hurt Hillary Clinton politically - exactly as Congressman McCarthy said. And the evidence makes that clear. In seventeen months the committee has interviewed or deposed eight Clinton campaign staffers. They're obsessed with Hillary Clinton and her campaign staffers. Yet stunningly, Chairman Gowdy and Republicans have little interest in questioning intelligence and defense experts. Republicans have only held one hearing with an expert from the intelligence community. They've never held even a single hearing with anyone from the Department of Defense.

The Republican Chairman and his colleagues have abandoned their plans to interview Defense officials and instead have gone after Secretary Clinton and her staff. The evidence is clear - the Benghazi Select Committee is a sham. Democrats have known this for almost two years. All Mr. McCarthy did was confirm what everyone already knew. That is why the Democratic leadership of the Senate wrote to Speaker Boehner asking him to disband the Select Committee. That is why I will not stop reminding Republicans of Congressman McCarthy's admission.

If it were up to me, House Democrats on that panel would nail this quote on the committee-room doors as a reminder to everyone that the Republicans have manipulated a true American tragedy and turned it into a political circus. Once again, McCarthy - "Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable, right? But we put together a Benghazi special committee, a select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping." He's so proud of himself.

Until House Republicans do the right thing and disband the committee, I will continue to tell the American people about the disgrace that is House Republicans' Benghazi Committee.

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Link: http://www.reid.senate.gov/press_releases/2015-10-07-reid-republicans-should-disband-disgraceful-benghazi-committee

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