Sean Hannity interviewed Pat Smith, the mother of Sean Smith, an information management officer in Benghazi who was killed in the attack on the consulate.
The subject of their conversation was the conspiracies and cover-ups surrounding the incident, and Mrs. Smith revealing how she is being silenced while at the same trying to find out what actually happened. So what she is being 'silenced' about is completely unclear, since she is in the dark.
He did tell them, ahead of time, he typed it into his little typewriter over there, that they were going to be attacked, ‘please they needed more security,’ and they were ignored. And I don’t appreciate everybody going to bed and going to sleep and not taking care of the guys that they put in harm’s way, one of them being my son.
They don’t tell me much. They want me to shut up…. I was told, and I really would rather not say by who, [though] I can if you need it, but I was told that I’m causing a lot of problems and to shut up…. I told them ‘I will not! I will not shut up until I find out what really happened!’
It is typical right-wing nonsense, with a mother's grief for her slain son passing for 'evidence' that this not only a failure at the highest levels of the Obama administration, but a coverup as well.
Much more than was ever needed has been said about the Benghazi incident, it has been milked dry of all possible political benefit, but rightwingers won't fail to try and make more hay out of it when a grieving mother can be paraded in front of us.
What is interesting about this exchange is this little nugget of information buried at the bottom of the exchange. There is going to be a ceremony May 3rd, honoring Sean Smith with the Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service, which is roughly equivalent to a civilian Purple Heart. The US government will not be paying for Pat Smith to get there. So, Hannity offered to pick up the tab so she can attend. And why can't she afford to attend? Why, she's on Social Security and relies on it for her entire income.
The silver lining? Sean Smith will be honored at an award ceremony on May 3rd but Ms. Smith was told she would have to pay her own way. As Ms. Smith’s income is limited to Social Security benefits, she could not afford to attend. Hannity balked at the idea that we justify costs for the First Family’s vacations and the White House concert series and parties, while “the mother of a slain hero from the Benghazi tragedy, which they screwed up because they didn’t listen to your son,” is not accommodated. Smith received a nice surprise – Hannity offered to pay for all her travel expenses (hotel, round-trip airfare, meals), as well as her guest’s, so that she can attend the ceremony, encouraging Smith to order a “big expensive steak dinner on me… with lobster on the side and a big bottle of wine.” A relieved and emotional Smith happily accepted.
Notice how that minor detail just gets glossed over? Yes, Republicans do realize seniors rely on Social Security for the majority of their income. It's not out of the ordinary - it is accepted as a matter of fact that a senior relies completely on SS benefits in their retirement and that a trip requiring airfare and a hotel can't be done on such a budget. The only 'issue' here is that the government, Obama's government, isn't altering normal protocol and finding a way to pay for this woman to attend the ceremony. Never mind the sequester which would have cut this in no time if it ever had been an allowable expense. And what until she gets Chain-CPI'ed, how would she pay for it then?