Jul 3, 2013

Request To Help Our People In Benghazi: Answer..."Stand Down"

Common Sense Commentary: Do we, the American People, represented by our government, which is controlled by The Obama Administration, STAND UP for our military troops and foreign service personnel, or do we STAND DOWN when they are in life or death situations ? Whatever the answer to that by we citizens, it doesn't matter. We are not in a position to give the orders to supply, assist, or rescue them. The immediate orders must come from the Executive Branch which executes the law and takes the action needed.  The Legislative Branch (Congress) Legislates the laws, the Judicial (Supreme and Lower Courts) judge the laws and the Executive Branch (President and his cabinet) execute the laws and authority under the law. Neither the Congress nor the Supreme Court could make the "Benghazi decision" or interfere with the President or his cabinet in making that decision. In the final analysis, Benghazi  was squarely in the lap of the President. "The buck stops here" said President Truman. And that is where the "Benghazi Buck" stops... while burning a hole in the Presidential britches right through his legs etc., the Presidential hot seat and through the Presidential floor of the Oval Office into the basement.... where it is still "lies" buried... but still burning.  The Presidential smoke, with mirrors to misdirect the guilty fire, fills the White House and Halls of Congress like Nero's burning of Rome, and blaming it on the Christians. The desperate Roman Emperor never owned up to burning his own city and neither will our desperate U.S. Emperor.  He has filled Washington with denials, while his cabinet lies and points fingers at any and everybody but the President, his Secretary Of State, Defense, or Cabinet. It must have been the Christians who done the dirty deed. RB

Here, below, is an expert testimony on Benghazi to which I am assigning my OOOOOO award ... Obviously Out Of Obama's Oxymoron Orbit. RB

 
Gentlemen

I would say every US fighter pilot, retired or on active duty, knows that Panetta and Dempsey both are full of ___  when they said there was no time to send help to Benghazi. They claim it was a problem of "time/space." All my friends and I said, "_______" We know they could have gotten F-16s there from Aviano. 

"Hands" Handley is a well-respected USAF fighter pilot. Here is his short resume and what he just wrote about Benghazi below that. If anything, Handley is pessimistic in his timeline of when F-16s could have reached Benghazi. I think they could have been airborne even sooner and turned quicker at Sig. The decision to not try was not based on capability. We 
had the operational capability in every way. 
I hope Handley's taxes are in order. His IRS audit is forthcoming.

Eagle Biography Colonel Phil "Hands" Handley 

Colonel Phil "Hands" Handley is credited with the highest speed air- to-air gun kill in the history of aerial combat. He flew operationally for all but 11 months of a 26-year career, in aircraft such as the F-86 Sabre, F-15 Eagle, and the C-130A Hercules. Additionally, he flew 275 combat missions during two tours in Southeast Asia in the F- 4D and F-4E. His awards include 21 Air Medals, 3 Distinguished Flying Crosses, and the Silver Star. 

Betrayal in Benghazi
Phil "Hands" Handley Colonel, USAF (Ret.) 

The combat code of the US Military is that we don't abandon our dead or wounded on the battlefield. In US Air Force lingo, fighter pilots don't run off and leave their wingmen. If one of our own is shot down, still alive and not yet in enemy captivity, we will either come to get him or die trying. 

Among America 's fighting forces, the calm, sure knowledge that such an irrevocable bond exists is priceless. Along with individual faith and personal grit, it is a sacred trust that has often sustained hope in the face of terribly long odds. 

The 
disgraceful abandonment of our Ambassador
 and those brave ex-SEALs who fought to their deaths to save others in that compound is nothing short of dereliction-of-duty. 

Additionally, the patently absurd cover-up scenario that was fabricated in the aftermath 
was an outright lie in an attempt to shield the President and the Secretary of State from responsibility. 

It has been over eight months since the attack on our compound in Benghazi . The White House strategy, with the aid of a "lap dog" press has been to run out the clock before the truth is forthcoming.
 
The recent testimonies of the three "whistle blowers" have reopened the subject and hopefully will lead to exposure and disgrace of those responsible for this embarrassing debacle. It would appear that the most recent firewall which the Administration is counting on is the contention "that there were simply no military assets that could be brought to bear in time to make a difference" mainly due to the unavailability of tanker support for fighter aircraft. This is simply BS, regardless how many supposed "experts" the Administration trot out to make such an assertion. 

The bottom line is that even if the closest asset capable of response was half-way around the world, you don't just sit on your penguin ___ and do nothing. 

The fact is that the closest asset was not half-way around the world, but as near as Aviano Air Base, Italy where two squadrons of F-16Cs are based. 

Consider the following scenario (all times Benghazi local): When 
Hicks in Tripoli receives a call at 9:40 PM from Ambassador Stevens informing him "Greg, we are under attack!" (his last words), he immediately notifies all agencies and prepares for the immediate initiation of an existing "Emergency Response Plan." At AFRICON, General Carter Ham attempts to mount a rescue effort, but is told to "stand down". By 10:30 PM an unarmed drone is overhead the compound and streaming live feed to various "Command and Control Agencies" and everyone watching that feed knew damn well what was going on. 

At 11:30 PM Woods, Doherty and five others leave Tripoli, arriving in Benghazi at 1:30 AM on Wednesday morning, where 
they hold off the attacking mob from the roof of the compound until they are killed by a mortar direct hit at 4:00 AM. So nothing could have been done, eh? Nonsense. If one assumes that tanker support really "was not available" what about this: 

When at 10:00 PM AFRICON alerts the 31st TFW Command Post in Aviano Air Base, Italy of the attack, the Wing Commander orders preparation for the launch of two F-16s and advises the Command Post at NAS Sigonella to prepare for hot pit refueling and quick turn of the jets. 

By 11:30 PM, two F-16Cs with drop tanks and each armed with five hundred 20 MM rounds are airborne. Flying at 0.92 mach they will cover the 522 nautical miles directly to NAS Sigonella in 1.08 hours. While in-route, the flight lead is informed of the tactical situation, rules of engagement, and radio frequencies to use. 

The jets depart Sigonella at 1:10 AM with full fuel load and cover the 377 nautical miles directly to Benghazi in 0.8 hours, arriving at 1:50 AM which would be 
20 minutes after the arrival of Woods, Doherty and their team. 
Providing that the two F-16s initial pass over the mob, in full afterburner at 200 feet and 550 knots did not stop the attack in its tracks, only a few well placed strafing runs on targets of opportunity would assuredly do the trick. 

Were the F-16s fuel state insufficient to recover at Sigonelli after jettisoning their external drop tanks, they could easily do so at Tripoli International Airport, only one-half hour away. 

As for those hand-wringing naysayers who would worry about IFR clearances, border crossing authority, collateral damage, landing rights, political correctness and dozens of other reasons not to act" _____ them". 
It is high time that our "leadership" get their priorities straight and put America's interests first. 
The end result would be that Woods and Doherty would be alive. 
Dozens in the attacking rabble would be rendezvousing with "72 virgins" and a clear message would have been sent to the next worthless ___ terrorist contemplating an attack on Americans that it is not really a good idea to "tug" on Superman's cape. 

Of course all this would 
depend upon a Commander In Chief
 that was more concerned with saving the lives of those he put in harm's way than getting his crew rested for a campaign fund raising event in Las Vegas the next day. As well as a Secretary of State that actually understood "What difference did it make?", or a Secretary of Defense whose immediate response was not to the effect that "One of the military tenants is that you don't commit assets until you fully understand the tactical situation." Was he not watching a live feed from the unarmed drone, and he didn't understand the tactical situation?  

Ultimately it comes down to the question of who gave that order to stand down? Whoever that coward turns out to be should be exposed, removed from office, and face criminal charges for dereliction of duty. The 
combat forces of the United States of America deserve leadership that really does "have their back" when the chips are down.




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