Hillary Clinton decries "scorched Earth" politics
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday night chastised lawmakers for the type of "scorched Earth" politics that led to the government shutdown.
"We are careening from crisis to crisis instead of having a plan bringing people to that plan, focusing on common sense solutions and being relentless in driving toward them," Clinton said at a Washington event celebrating the 10th anniversary of the founding of the progressive Center for American Progress (CAP).
Clinton was similarly talking about the need for Congress to cooperate more in a speech she delivered Wednesday night at the University of Buffalo, when she was interrupted by a heckler. A man in the audience stood up and yelled, "Benghazi, Benghazi, you let them die," referencing the Sept. 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya that resulted in the death of four Americans.
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Clinton took more heat for the attack Thursday night from former Vice President Dick Cheney, who said on Hugh Hewitt's radio show that she is avoiding responsibility for it.
"She clearly wasn't hands on, and now she doesn't want to be hands on," Cheney said. "And she's doing everything she can to avoid responsibility for what clearly fell into her bailiwick."
He added, "I think the Benghazi thing is one of the great -- it's not just an embarrassment, it's a tragedy, because we lost four people that night. And what I always recall is her testimony saying, 'What difference does it make?' And the fact of the matter is it makes a huge difference."
Clinton hasn't said yet whether she'll run for president in 2016, but the political action committee preparing for her potential bid, Ready for Hillary PAC, is defending her against the Benghazi attacks. The group sent an email to its supporters, promoting a new book called "The Benghazi Hoax."
"It's only 2013, and already Republicans and their allies in the conservative media are desperate to attack and defame Hillary, hoping that their lies will dissuade her from running for president," the email says.
Ready for Hillary also announced via Twitter that billionaire financier George Soros is joining its national finance council as a co-chair, meaning he's pledged to donate or raise at least $25,000 for the group.
