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Newsweek Senior National Security Correspondent Eli Lake on a report that the White House considering retaliating in response to the attack on the U.S...
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One day after FBI agents briefly inspected the consulates and -- Ghazi.
The Obama administration is weighing whether it should take military action against the terrorists responsible.
For killing four Americans including our ambassador.
That is what is being reported by my next guest we're joined now by senior national security correspondent for Newsweek.
And the Daily Beast Eli lake who has broken countless errors on the attack and been -- You lie again I just wanna start by just commending you -- -- terrific reporting on this story.
-- and go to your most recent which is that the administration the president is still not decided how to proceed.
Against those that our intelligence officials say.
Participated if I'm led.
This terrorist attack.
While there -- two.
Processes that are going on right now one is an intelligence community process of going about identifying those responsible.
For the -- -- assault and figuring out their locations and going about kind of hunting them the way that the United States and CIA.
-- and senior members of al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan and so forth.
The other is a law enforcement investigation which has been fairly slow going as you point out with the FBI just arriving yesterday.
In -- -- and able to go to was seen at the consulate which appears to probably have very little forensic value for a criminal investigation.
At this point the White House has yet to decide whether this is going to be treated as a the high crime or an act of war.
And in that respect they are are people who were kind of coming to me and saying.
There is perishable intelligence on the ground and they'd like to know and answer you know sooner rather than later.
At this point there's seems to be -- no indication whatsoever of any significant US.
Military Covert or overt presence in big guns he or nearer than -- able to carry out the will of the commander in chief should -- make a decision.
Hopefully that is a he brought on this apprehension on the public's.
-- Well my sources tell me there are.
I -- capabilities in place for special operations teams as well as.
Drone strikes if the call is made.
To go after targets in Libya but there are major political problems you've got a government in Tripoli.
That is pro American at this point and you've got leaders of that government that have.
Said that they would not like to see the kind of unilateral strikes in Libya that.
I've become somewhat common I guess in Yemen Pakistan.
Somalia and other places the other.
Issue here is.
In some ways you know President Obama stand to be doesn't -- have -- doesn't because.
It would be seen as a kind of political move in in an election year a month away from the election if he was to take a sort of strike based on the intelligence.
However not acting could also have political consequences so it's a very tough I think decision for the White House at this point somewhere it's that is also very challenge -- -- View I think on the part.
-- analysts who would say that that is a pro American.
Government because.
There's nothing pro American about.
Refusing.
To allow the FBI agents to go from Tripoli to been Ghazi.
A fourth -- instead left there for three weeks.
-- that those aren't the acts of a friendly government -- either that or it was a delay.
On the part of a ten led government namely -- -- Well I I'm still trying to find out the dynamic -- the one thing I can say is that they reaction.
You know in the aftermath of the assault was very different than what we saw on Egypt.
There were some arrests though it doesn't look like -- the people who were arrested at first were you know anything more than I guess what might be called the usual suspects.
The other problem I think is that the government in Tripoli doesn't really have that much capability.
They need to negotiate with a lot of militias.
In eastern Libya that have different agendas then the -- government in Tripoli and may not be so interest -- in the end and helping the United States.
Bring they killers of ambassador Steven suggest us.
-- -- like we thank you for being with us look forward to talking with you -- -- --
