WASHINGTON -- A former investigator for the House Select Committee on Benghazi says he was unlawfully fired in part because he sought to conduct a comprehensive probe into the deadly attacks on the U.S. compound, instead of focusing on Hillary Rodham Clinton and the State Department.
Air Force Reserve Maj. Bradley Podliska discussed his allegations with The New York Times and CNN. The newspaper on Saturday posted a story based on a draft of a legal complaint that he said he plans to file in federal court. CNN released a story about Podliska ahead of an interview airing today on its morning program State of the Union and also had a draft of the complaint.
Podliska, who described himself as a Republican planning to vote for the GOP nominee for president, said the House committee was engaged in a partisan investigation of the Benghazi attack. Four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya, were killed when the consulate came under fire on Sept. 11, 2012.
Podliska said the committee turned all of its attention to Clinton and the State Department after it was revealed that she used a private email server as secretary of state. The move de-emphasized other agencies involved with the attacks and their aftermath, according to a draft of the complaint.
Clinton, a Democratic presidential candidate, and her supporters have accused House Republicans of trying to use the Benghazi committee to hobble her campaign. She recently called it "nothing but a partisan exercise."
In a statement, the committee denied Podliska's accusations and said it "will not be blackmailed into a monetary settlement for a false allegation made by a properly terminated former employee." The committee also said that Podliska had shown bias in his investigative work.
A Section on 10/11/2015