Gowdy vs. Cummings: Benghazi committee brawls before Clinton hearing

By Sarah Westwood, Sarah Westwood

Published December 20, 2015

One day after Rep. Elijah Cummings, top Democrat on the House Select Committee on Benghazi, accused Chairman Trey Gowdy of jumping to conclusions about an outed CIA source, Gowdy hit back by suggesting the entire process of redacting information may be compromised.

Within an hour of the Democrats' decision to publish a selective 124-page summary of past witness interviews, a Republican spokesman was slamming minority members for their "obsession with covering for Hillary Clinton."

The exchanges Sunday and Monday highlighted the internal tensions that have threatened to overshadow the committee's investigation of the 2012 Benghazi terror attack as the panel prepares to question its most high-profile witness later this week: Hillary Clinton.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest captured the enormously high stakes facing the Benghazi panel Monday when he suggested the focus at Thursday's interview with Clinton will be on the committee's conduct, not on Clinton's answers.

"They're under a lot of pressure to produce," Earnest said. "Thus far we haven't seen them produce much."