Exclusive–Trump: Select Committee Needed to Investigate Benghazi Scandal

Real estate magnate, television star, and conservative provocateur Donald Trump called on Speaker John Boehner to install a select committee to investigate the Benghazi scandal in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News on Tuesday morning.

“I think that’s good,” Trump said when asked if he thought there should be a select committee to investigate Benghazi. “It’s a good thing. It should be investigated. It was a catastrophic event. Certainly, they should get to the bottom of it.”

Trump is the latest political leader to call for a select committee to investigate Benghazi. In the House, 181 members – more than three quarters of the House GOP conference – have formally signed on to the push led by Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA). Moreover, several members of the families of Benghazi victims recently called for a select committee in a letter to Boehner first reported by Breitbart News.

Proponents of a select committee say it would help organize five separate investigations into one effort, giving the investigation a more unified approach.

Boehner has resisted the push for a select committee, arguing the work of the separate congressional committees investigating the matter is sufficient. “The reason I haven’t called for a select committee yet is that I don’t think it’s risen to that level,” Boehner told Fox News in April of 2013. “I think the five committees that have jurisdiction over this matter are working closely together. They’re getting the job done.”

A spokesman for Boehner did not respond to a request for comment about Trump’s remarks.

Trump spoke to Breitbart from New Hampshire where he had just spoken to a crowd of about 300 at Saint Anselm College’s “Politics and Eggs” event, though he said the visit was “not at all” connected with the state’s role in presidential politics.

He also put to bed rumors that he may run for governor of New York against incumbent Democrat Andrew Cuomo. The Republican party in New York is “extremely weak and has no idea how to win,” Trump said in explaining his reticence.

As a party, Trump said Republicans should spend 2014 focused on Obamacare. “Obamacare is going to lead to a tremendous Republican victory in November. It’s a catastrophe waiting to happen.”

“People are losing their doctors. They’re losing their plans, and when they get a plan, they’re paying much more money for it and it’s not nearly as good,” he continued. “These were all false statements he made – you keep your plan, you keep your doctor. So, Obamacare is going to be the big thing on the menu.”

Trump also dismissed conventional wisdom about the Tea Party losing power and influence. “I think that the Tea Party is doing absolutely fine,” Trump said. “They are tremendous people who want what’s good for the country. They have a great love of the United States and they want it to be taken care of. People should not underestimate the Tea Party. It would be a big mistake for them to do so.”

[H/T Breitbart]

Reid: Boehner ‘Afraid’ to Hold Vote

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Breitbart reported: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) to Speaker John Boehner (R-OH):

“I ask John Boehner, why are you afraid? Are you afraid it will pass and the people will know you held the federal government hostage for no reason?”

Obama Backs GOP into Debt-Ceiling Corner with Syria Move

Breitbart reported: President Barack Obama’s decision to punt a possible strike against Syria to Congress has reshuffled the congressional calculus on Washington’s looming debt-ceiling debate and made Republican concessions more likely, say GOP congressional aides.

A House Republican aide told Reuters that Obama’s Syrian maneuver “would make it a lot harder to vote against a debt-ceiling increase given that we’re the party that tends to be more hard-line security and military supporters in the Reagan tradition.”

By forcing congress to debate and weigh in on a possible strike on Syria, Obama has increased the likelihood that congress will pass a short-term stop-gap funding measure, say analysts.

“Syria has really scrambled an incredibly crowded calendar,” says Guggenheim Securities political analyst Chris Krueger. “I think you have to say that the chance of a short-term extension has increased.”

Obama’s Syrian shuffle and the debt-ceiling showdown also have implications for Obamacare, just four weeks away from opening. Last week, 80 House Republicans sent a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) stating they would not grant a continuing resolution to extend government funding without denying Obamacare implementation funds. Obama’s decision to shift Syria to congress now complicates Republicans’ position during a time of possible war.

The United States is expected to hit the debt-ceiling in October.