National farce, cont'd

Assorted commentary:

VDH: A Country Unhinged

Nothing seems real anymore, not preelection federal data on jobs or food stamps or the release of such “facts”; not foreign-policy information like an Iranian attack on a drone; not the supposedly competent federal relief in response to Hurricane Sandy. Even Saddam Hussein’s plebiscites could not achieve margins like the 19,605 to 0 we saw in 59 Philadelphia precincts. Does anyone care? [. . .]

How did a single Jill Kelley warrant hundreds of hours of chat time from our highest generals, engaged in a life and death struggle in the war against terror and Afghanistan? Who was not consulted, not advised, not ordered — in order to free up time for Kelley and Broadwell? [. . .]

Is there one honest person in Washington left?

Don't look at Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta -- he knows nothing about anything:

I'm reading the papers like you are . . . .

LOL. Speaking of liars, Jay Carney: It’s a ‘simple fact’ the White House wasn’t informed about the Petraeus mess until the day after the election

Bill Kristol: A source tells me Petraeus wasn’t completely honest in his Benghazi briefing to Congress 

Charles Krauhammer: Petraeus Testimony On Benghazi Possibly Influenced By WH Knowledge Of Affair

I think the really shocking news today was that General Petraeus thought and hoped he could keep his job. He thought that it might and would be kept secret and then he could stay in his position. I think what that tells us is really important. It meant that he understood that the FBI obviously knew what was going on. He was hoping that those administration officials would not disclose what had happen and therefore hoping that he would keep his job. And that meant that he understood that his job, his reputation, his legacy, his whole celebrated life was in the hands of the administration and he expected they would protect him by keeping it quiet. 

Washington Post: Petraeus hoped affair would stay secret and he could keep his job as CIA director

Mark Steyn finds some bitter irony in Jill Kelley's 911 call requesting "diplomatic protection" for her yard: Forget Benghazi: What About Our Diplomats in Tampa?

On the one hand, a real ambassador at a real consulate under siege calls Washington for help and gets crickets chirping.

On the other, a fantasy ambassador who declares her own home her personal consulate gets untold hours of attention from the U.S. commander in Afghanistan and the director of the CIA, both of whom also have time to intervene in her twin sister’s custody case.

John Podhoretz:

If Jill Kelley gets diplomatic immunity as an honorary consul, do I get to have an affair with Paula Broadwell b/c I'm a Kentucky Colonel?
— John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) November 14, 2012

Via DSMW, some background from Tampa, where the air is rarefied: Petraeus and CENTCOM Sex Jets?

Exit question from Laura Rosen Cohen:

Is Kelley really "37"?
Because if she's 37, then I'm the Queen of England. 

We demand to see the birth certificate!

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Breaking from Hot Air: Petraeus will testify.

So far this is only a breaking headline at Fox News, but the word on Twitter is that former CIA Director David Petraeus has agreed to testify in both House and Senate intelligence committee hearings about the terrorist attack that killed four Americans and sacked our consulate in Benghazi.  That reverses the previous announcements that Petraeus would decline to testify and have acting DCI Michael Morell handle Congress in his stead.

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Yesterday's post here.

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