By AFP’s Jo Biddle, “She may have disappeared off the radar for several weeks, … but Clinton showed Wednesday that she’s back, and in fighting form. … [T]he 65-year-old Clinton gave a consummate performance displaying political skills honed over decades … At a Senate hearing into the attack on the US mission in the Libyan city of Benghazi, she choked back tears over the lives lost but, in a flash of anger, unleashed long-held frustration at Republican charges of a bid to cover up the actual sequence of events … ‘Was it because of a protest, or was it because of guys out for a walk one night who decided they’d go kill some Americans? What difference, at this point, does it make?’ Clinton shot back, pounding the table. … The ghost of futures yet to come stalked the hearings, as Clinton faced questions from young senators Marco Rubio and Rand Paul — both of whom have been eyed as possible Republican party presidential candidates in 2016. If so, they could find themselves up against Democrat Clinton, who many observers believe will run again to be the nation’s first woman president after taking time out to rest and recuperate. … POINT… COUNTERPOINT Point: “Had I been president at the time and I found that you did not read the cables from Benghazi, you did not read the cables from Ambassador Stevens, I would have relieved you of your post.” – Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her testimony Wednesday on the attacks in Benghazi that killed four Americans. Counterpoint: Hillary Clinton’s record high approval rating this week: 67% (Washington Post/ABC poll).
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Jan 2013