John McCain says White House not being upfront about deadly Niger ambush

[groundloop]

Source: CBS News

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain says the Trump administration needs to explain how four U.S. soldiers were killed in Niger. Bryan Black, Jeremiah Johnson, Dustin Wright, and La David Johnson were told not to expect enemy contact on that mission to meet with community leaders two weeks ago. They were stationed in Niger with hundreds of other U.S. troops, working with local forces to fight terrorism.

President Trump did not mention the lost soldiers until Monday. He was then criticized for how he spoke to the widow of one of the men who died. The president insists he said nothing inappropriate.

It will take an investigation to determine if any warning signs were missed, but Sen. McCain says the administration is not being upfront and he's demanding more information about the attack, reports CBS News' Margaret Brennan.

In a pre-mission briefing they were told "no enemy contact expected," but the group, about 40 in all, were attacked by militants, who the Pentagon now believes are part of an offshoot of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mccain-says-trump-administration-not-being-upfront-about-niger-attack/

[Kittycow]

1. Any hearing will probably be whitewashed.

[BumRushDaShow]

2. He is chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee

so let's see if he holds a hearing.... because HE would be the one with the power to do so.

[IronLionZion]

4. McCain likes to talk the talk to promote his maverick image

I'd like to see if he walks the walk. I doubt it but he is the one with the power to do it.

The ranking Dem is Jack Reed and he's been speaking out about this issue. I hope they hold a hearing.

[reflection]

3. I want to make a glib Benghazi reference

but this whole shitshow just has me beaten down. The hypocrisy of the Republicans, their double standards, and failure of the American people to realize it is just disheartening.

[stopwastingmymoney]

5. Exactly, nt

[lark]

6. Go go, go Johnny go go go!

Johnny B Good!

This so much needed to be brought public, thankful to him for doing it.

[blondebanshee]

7. Trump won't speak about it because it was a Russian military op

[link:http://tass.com/defense/959862|

[Roland99]

8. This thread posits a possibility

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029727741

Palmerreport article. So take that under advisement.

[JI7]

9. I had the same thoughts but the source is not credible

That doesn't mean what they say isn't true but it's not based on actual facts they have seen. But more suspected.

[Mr.Bill]

10. I have long been resigned to the fact

that our military will always be involved in things that we will never be told about. That is the nature of things for matters of national security. Even your local police force conducts operations that the public is not told about because of the integrity of the operation and the safety of their personnel.

I would like to know everything that is going on but that's not going to happen. In our government, we elect officials who do get this information, and we must trust them to be our watchdog on certain things. It's why Democrats try to not elect idiots while republicans seem to make it a point to do so. It's far from a perfect system much of the time.

In the mean time, it's interesting to discuss it in places like this.

[Irish_Dem]

11. Now that the US is aligned with Russia, there will be even more secrecy. nt

[Mr.Bill]

12. And that is because

the wrong person was elected. More wrong than it's ever been.

[Irish_Dem]

13. Wrong person was (s)elected. Installed by Moscow.

[Achilleaze]

14. What are republicans hiding from Americans?

Their "leader" - Comrade Casino, republican Draft-Dodger-in-Chief, is being extra shifty about this colossal republican FAIL, and his unforgiveable dissing of an American soldier who gave his life for his country, and his heartbroken family.

Disgusting.

[weydowner]

15. 'Terrorism' trumps everything

I reckon these madmen have brought about this paranoia in the 'First World' but countering lunacy with a totally different lunacy has never worked and certainly is doomed now.

Already people have put the shootings in Las Vegas from their mind. Already Puerto Rico is so so last-week's-news, things like the California Fires or damage to Texas or Florida seem completely forgotten. One disaster after another, obliterated by Donald is seeing how much further he can go.

THE MAIN POINT is - why were these soldiers there in the first place; how many troops are in Niger and who was on their side? Why was Chad on Donald's black list when tat country is an ally of the US? Why is all this trickling out now due to Trump's pettiness? etc etc and etc.

By the weekend all this will be forgotten because some other trivial outrage will blow up and all the US Media will devote 99% of their coverage to that.

And you are all in peace. Just wait until a war comes, which it will.

[UCmeNdc]

16. There is a story going around that the Green Berets were supporting some sort of Russian interests

in Nigers.

MOSCOW, August 10. /TASS/. Russia plans to sign a military cooperation deal with the Republic of Niger in West Africa, including interaction in the war on terror and measures to strengthen international security, according to a Russian government resolution published on the government’s legal information web portal on Thursday.
Under the document, the Russian government had made a decision "to approve a draft military cooperation agreement between the government of the Russian Federation and the government of the Republic of Niger submitted by the Defense Ministry and approved by the Foreign Ministry of Russia and other departments concerned."


More:
http://tass.com/defense/959862

[Bayard]

17. Wait a minute...

This is the first I've heard there were 40 people on this mission. i would think that's 40 witnesses to what happened, and what was their mission.

And is McCain in danger of turning away from the Dark Side?

[liberalla]

18. John Mccain can watch Rachel Maddow tonight and understand it all

she's on right now...

Rachel explains the story behind the soldiers being killed in Niger