Congress Slaps NYT Benghazi Report: Qaeda Was Involved

Congressmembers took turns today swinging at yesterday's New York Times report that al-Qaeda wasn't involved in the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, with Darrell Issa defending his past statements implicating the terror group. "There is a group that was involved that claims an affiliation with al-Qaeda," he said, per Politico. Of the Times' conclusion that the attack was "fueled in large part by anger at an American-made video denigrating Islam," Issa countered, saying, "We have seen no evidence that the video was widely seen in Benghazi. People from this administration … have said under oath there was no evidence of any reaction to a video." Democrat Adam Schiff of California stood by Qaeda's involvement, but said the Times report "adds some valuable insights," reports Politico. "It is a complex picture." Said Michigan Republican Mike Rogers, "I find the timing odd. I don’t want to speculate on why (the NYT) might do it." Elsewhere on your Sunday dial, as per Politico:

• Ted Cruz on his 'whirlwind' first year: "This is a city where it’s all politics all the time. And I’m trying to do my best not to pay attention to the politics, to focus on fixing the problems. I know it’s hard to believe, because no one in this town does that. This is a time for people to step up and do the right thing. And that’s what I’m trying to do."
• Howard Dean on ObamaCare: "There are going to be problems. The data does show that less healthy people are signing up. Younger people are signing up less frequently than hoped." Critics, however, are guilty of "hyperbole" and "look incredibly partisan," and "the first year is going to be more successful than most people think."
• GOP commentator Ana Navarro on GOP incumbents vs. the Tea Party: "I think you're going to see them win their primaries because they're taking it seriously, they're campaigning hard, they're raising the money and they're doing what they have to do. They're not about to get Richard Lugared."
• Joe Lieberman says he would still vote for ObamaCare: "The rollout of ObamaCare has been bad," as was the status quo. "The best thing that could happen now is for both parties to sit down and figure out how to fix the current system."

(More Sunday morning talk shows stories.)