Baghdad is not Benghazi
Forcing the recent embassy attack into a partisan frame confuses more than it illuminates
The U.S. embassy in Baghdad came under attack, threatening American lives and highlighting problems in U.S. foreign policy, but for many Americans it’s all about partisan politics. Even before the event was over, media figures, politicians, and thousands of social media users rushed to compare it to the September 2012 attack on American diplomatic facilities in Benghazi, Libya. Whether positive or negative, the message was clear: what really matters is how this affects Donald Trump’s political standing.
MSNBC’s Joy Reid called it “Trump’s Benghazi.” Politico framed the story as “Trump tries to avoid his own Benghazi.” Senator Lindsey Graham said Trump “has put the world on notice — there will be no Benghazis on his watch.” The president weighed in, proclaiming the event “The Anti-Benghazi!” and amplifying Jack Posobiec, a conspiracy theorist who made his name spreading lies about a child sex trafficking operation in the basement of a DC pizza place (that didn’t have a basement).
All these comparisons are misguided. Posobiec creating and Trump spreading disinformation about the Benghazi and Baghdad attacks is worse, but all the analogies are a stretch, and all place political point-scoring above U.S…
