SC Senator Lindsey Graham, having dug himself into a hole over Benghazi, dug deeper today. Can you spot the new talking points?
CROWLEY: OK. About Benghazi, I want to get you on the record about this.
GRAHAM: Um-hmm.
CROWLEY: CBS aired a piece that was centered around a man, a British man who said that he was there, that he got into the compound where the four Americans were killed. GRAHAM: Right.
CROWLEY: He seemed to substantiate some of the suspicions that this clearly was not a well fortified place, that there had been signs all along that terrorists intended to attack it.
Now it turns out that CBS has backed away from their eyewitness, because it does not appear that he told the truth.
Now you, based on that report, went after the president's nominees and said any nominee that comes up here, I'm going to block until we can talk to American eyewitnesses.
GRAHAM: Right.
CROWLEY: I just want to remind you of something you said at the time.
GRAHAM: Right.
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GRAHAM: How can I explain to the people in my home state and throughout the country that the story they told us about Benghazi holds water after the "60 Minutes" story?
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CROWLEY: The "60" - but the "60 Minutes" story was not true.
GRAHAM: Right.
CROWLEY: Will you now end your threat to place a hold on the president's nominees?
GRAHAM: No. My - my request has been going on for a year, to talk to the five survivors of the State Department. I never asked for the British contractor. I didn't know he exited.
We've written one letter to the president - myself, Kelly Ayotte and John McCain; two to Secretary Kerry. On the 24th of September, we said we would like to interview the survivors, the five State Department officials, who have been interviewed by the administration, but not by Congress.
The "60 Minutes" story says that the attack on the compounded was not a protest, but a preplanned al Qaeda attack that you could see coming for months.
GRAHAM: And people who said that were not the British contractor.
CROWLEY: Sure, but...
GRAHAM: I want to ask the survivors, who've never been interviewed by the Congress - please let me finish here - did you report a protest?
Did you report - did you ever indicate there was a protest?
Did you say this was a terrorist attack from the beginning?
When you were interviewed by the FBI four days later, did you ever mention a protest?
If the survivors, Candy, never said there was a protest, where did the story come from?
And did these survivors - would they tell me, if I asked them, I had a chance to, was there inadequate security, in your mind?
Could you see al Qaeda buildup in Benghazi?
Did you tell anybody about the threat of al Qaeda?
CROWLEY: Sure, Senator...
GRAHAM: And how did they respond?
CROWLEY: OK, if I could...
GRAHAM: To me, that's the essence of what I'm trying to get at.
CROWLEY: Right. And I understand. And you've been at it for some time.
GRAHAM: A year.
CROWLEY: But what spurred your action to block the president's nominees was the "60 Minutes" report. So that's what prompted you to do this...
GRAHAM: That's...
CROWLEY: - and now - I mean you did it the day after and you cited it. And so my question is...
GRAHAM: Yes, ma'am.
CROWLEY: - are there other ways to get out - to get what you want...
GRAHAM: Yes, ma'am. There are.
CROWLEY: - without threatening the president's - the head of the Fed or the head of homeland security agency?
GRAHAM: I met with the State Department Thursday about my desire to talk to the five survivors, American personnel, State Department employees, American citizens, independent of the State Department's Accountability Review Board. Nobody in Congress has got to talk to these people.
I released two ambassadors that I had a hold on, because we're trying to work out a bipartisan way to interview these witnesses. why?
Oversight is important. I want to perform oversight.
CROWLEY: Sure.
GRAHAM: I'm not trying to prosecute a crime.
I'm not trying to defend the British contractor. I want to hear from the people that worked for us, that are American citizens in harm's way - what did you feel like when you were told nobody was coming to help you?
Did you see a protest?
Did you report a protest?
CROWLEY: Right.
GRAHAM: Did you tell the FBI about a protest?
And if they didn't, did you see security concerns before the attack?
Did you report them and who to?
Fourteen months after the attack, we don't - we haven't heard from those who survived the attack. Congress has an independent duty...
CROWLEY: Right.
GRAHAM: - to find out what happened in Benghazi. And that's what I'm after. And I hope we can find a way to get these interviews and release all of the holds.
CROWLEY: I understand. But I want to clarify two things. Right now, your threat to hold up nominees stands?
GRAHAM: I've released two. I released two...
CROWLEY: Right.
GRAHAM: - with the understanding that we're going to have a bipartisan process to interview the survivors...
CROWLEY: OK.
GRAHAM: - to ask the basic questions, was there ever a protest?
Did you report a protest?
Were you concerned about security before the attack?
CROWLEY: Right. But you...
GRAHAM: Who did you talk to...
CROWLEY: - but it holds in general?
GRAHAM: - and what did they tell you?
CROWLEY: Depending on the situation, your threat (INAUDIBLE) holds?
GRAHAM: Yes.
CROWLEY: OK.
And finally...
GRAHAM: But the only - yes, the only - and can I just say, the only reason is I've been trying for a year to get the interviews without holds. And you just can't allow something this bad and this big of a national security failure, for the administration to investigate itself. I don't want to hold anybody.
CROWLEY: Right.
GRAHAM: All I want to do is talk to the survivors, protecting their security, protecting their identity, to find out exactly what did happen.
CROWLEY: OK.
GRAHAM: Was it a protest?
As it an al Qaeda-inspired (INAUDIBLE)?
CROWLEY: OK. Let me ask you quickly...
GRAHAM: How did President Obama...
CROWLEY: Right. GRAHAM: - and Secretary Clinton miss the rise of al Qaeda in Libya?
CROWLEY: And let me just say - GRAHAM: (INAUDIBLE).
CROWLEY: - say quickly, and see if I can get a quick answer from you. We know that one eyewitness in the region has testified, at least on the House side, behind closed doors.
GRAHAM: Yes.
CROWLEY: CNN has learned that there will be three former security people. They're described as former SEAL, a former Ranger, a former Marine...
GRAHAM: Right.
CROWLEY: - will testify next week.
How many is enough for you?
GRAHAM: That's good.
OK. There are five State Department survivors that were interviewed by the Accountability Review Board appointed by Secretary Clinton. Those five, and the CIA officials who have relevant information about Benghazi, that's all, less than 30, probably. All I'm trying to do is establish...
CROWLEY: But you want 30...
GRAHAM: - where the protest story comes from.
CROWLEY: Right. You want 30...
GRAHAM: I don't know how many...
CROWLEY: - there's 30 folks you want to talk to?
GRAHAM: - (INAUDIBLE).
CROWLEY: OK. All right.
GRAHAM: Well, I don't know - I don't know how many in the CIA. And the CIA has been pretty good. They're providing witnesses to their oversight committees.
CROWLEY: OK.
GRAHAM: The State Department has thus far refused to allow anybody in Congress to talk to these five. And we're going to talk to them, because they possess the best information about what happened in Benghazi...
CROWLEY: OK. GRAHAM: - more than you and I know. And I want to find out what they know.
CROWLEY: It's certainly more than I know at this point.
GRAHAM: OK. All right.
CROWLEY: Thanks so much, Senator.
I appreciate your time this morning.
GRAHAM: Me, too.
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