Foreign Policy

The House on Thursday officially struck House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike J. Rogers (R-Mich.) from the list of members co-sponsoring a bill that would require an investigation into the September attacks on U.S. missions in Libya, Egypt and Yemen.

According to House aides, Rogers was never supposed to be a co-sponsor of the bill, which incidentally was referred to his committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee.

The Senate passed a resolution by unanimous consent Thursday night supporting Israel’s strikes on Gaza earlier this week.

S.Res.599 expresses “vigorous support and unwavering commitment to the welfare, security, and survival of the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state with secure borders, and recognizing and strongly supporting its right to act in self-defense to protect its citizens against acts of terrorism.”

House members of both parties on Thursday offered strong support for legislation granting Russia permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status, setting up an easy vote on the rule late Thursday afternoon and easy House passage on Friday.

Members debated the rule for the Russia trade bill, H.R. 6156, which heard both sides offer rare praise for the bipartisanship that was displayed in developing the legislation.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) filed a resolution Wednesday calling for a Select Committee to investigate the administration’s response to a terrorist attack in Libya.

On Sept. 11, 2012, the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, was attacked and four Americans were killed, including U.S. ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens.

“Four brave Americans died,” McCain said on the Senate floor Wednesday. “It has now been eight weeks — the American people have received nothing but contradictory statements from our government. … The American people deserve the facts — they need to know why the security at the consulate was so inadequate. 

House Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.), who will retire at the end of the 112th Congress, called on his colleagues Tuesday to support a Russia trade bill up this week even though Russian President Vladimir Putin is "not a good guy."

"Vladimir Putin is not a good guy," Dreier said on the House floor. "Vladimir Putin has inflicted horrendous human rights policies on the people of Russia, we've seen crony capitalism take hold.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said Friday that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton needs to answer to the charges that she denied a security request for the U.S. Consulate in Libya before the terrorist attack.

On Sept. 11, four Americans were killed in Benghazi, including U.S. ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens. Republicans have criticized the administration for its handling of the terrorist attack, especially since new reports have suggested that Stevens’s request for more security at the consulate was denied by the State Department ahead of the attack.

Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) continued to urge the U.S. Department of Commerce on Thursday to reject what they said was falsified data from foreign competitors in South Korea in order to protect U.S. jobs.

Stabenow and Brown said they are trying to protect jobs in their home states. Whirlpool filed a case with the Commerce Department regarding the dumping of residential washers, made in South Korea and Mexico, into the U.S. market. The lawmakers said these unfairly dumped imports place companies that manufacture their product in America, such as Whirlpool, at an unfair disadvantage.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Wednesday that she’s “outraged” over recent reports on the terrorist attack of the U.S consulate in Libya.

“I am outraged to hear reports that the United States government failed to address security needs in Libya, even more with reports that trained personnel on the ground were discouraged from responding to reports of trouble at our Consulate in Benghazi,” Murkowski said in a statement Wednesday. “The administration owes the American people straight and honest answers about what happened, whether it was preventable and what lessons they have learned from this tragedy.”

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) campaigned for GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Michigan on Tuesday night.

The Detroit Free Press reported that McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, slammed President Obama’s record.

“I was worried about this country when I lost in 2008,” McCain said. “But my worst expectations were realized. We have to have Mitt Romney.”

Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) demanded a detailed timeline of the terrorist attacks in Libya, including what members of the administration knew and when.

Johanns sent a letter Monday to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, saying the administration’s failure to provide a clear account of the events has led some to wonder if facts are being withheld for political reasons.