BACK FROM BENGHAZI, Sen. Bob Corker says Obama Must Have Known About Libya.

This morning, I spoke with Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who had just returned from Libya, about the Benghazi debacle. He was animated and clearly flabbergasted at the administration’s reaction. “It baffles me that the vice president of the United States would continue to say things that don’t square with the facts on the ground, “ he said in reference to VP Joe Biden’s remarks in the debate Thursday night. He reiterated, “There was no protest. There was no reaction to the [anti-Muslim video], and they knew it in 24 hours. I don’t understand what they are doing.”

This week he had extensive meetings with the FBI and intelligence officials on the ground in Benghazi as well as officials from the Libyan government. He was emphatic: “What I know is our intelligence officials on the ground in real time and also in Washington within 24 hours knew what had happened.”

Corker, who with the departure of Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) is next in line to chair the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has tried to jump-start hearings in the Senate. However, it conceded, “There is no way before the election [to have hearings] with the majority that doesn’t want them.” The game plan here for Democrats, it appears, is to sweep the scandal under the rug until the election.

With help from the bylined Democratic operatives in the press. Much more at the link.

UPDATE: Okay, this is worth quoting, too:

In fact, Corker explained that the U.S. government had information for some time about the internal security breakdown in Libya. He noted that Foreign Relations Committee had hearings in which the Libyan security situation was referenced. But the administration, Corker believes, still clung to the story that Libya was doing just fine. He said, “That narrative is the reason you are seeing the administration acting the way it is.”

Bitterly clinging to their Libya narrative, I guess. . . .