More than 26,000 members of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA) have come out in favor of creating a Watergate-style investigatory committee that would be tasked with determining the truth behind the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks in Benghazi, Libya.
FLEOA, the largest association of federal officers in America, threw their support behind the investigatory committee in a letter sent Friday morning to Rep. Frank Wolf (R., Va.), the chief architect of a bill that would establish the select committee.
FLEOA President Jon Adler told Wolf that the federal officers believe the Obama administration has been stonewalling efforts to find the truth. They find this troubling, particularly in light of the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) officer who was wounded in the attack that killed four Americans.
The FLEOA represents DSS officers such as those wounded in the terror attacks and has an interest in the outcome of the Benghazi investigations.
"We have grieving family members and a seriously injured DSS Special Agent that deserve the unwavering respect and commitment of our Congress," Adler wrote. "Our heroes didn't take pause while confronting fatal risk. Congress should not take pause in confronting the need to properly investigate this matter."
Congress should be committing every resource it has to uncovering the truth, the letter says.
"When the questions involve the fatalities of two heroic SEALS, as well a the injuries of brave DSS Special Agents, every government resource should be committed towards answering them," Adler wrote, according to a copy of the letter obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. "We don't kick heroes under the carpet because we find an investigative inquiry administratively inconvenient."
Recent testimony from State Department whistleblowers have only increased concerns that the Obama administration may be covering up information relating to the attack, according to the letter.
"In light of the recent testimony of three State Department witnesses, including a DSS Special Agent, it is imperative that a bipartisan Select Committee on the Terrorist Attack in Benghazi be formed immediately," Adler wrote.
"The production of 1,000 documents by the State Department and the administration, as well as the testimony of former Secretary [Hillary] Clinton, has proven insufficient in addressing numerous unanswered questions," the letter says.
"In supporting this measure, I would expect full bipartisan cooperation of both parties and save the sticks and stones feuding for trivial matters," Adler wrote.
The Benghazi select committee would have subpoena power and be able to compel the testimony of senior administration officials who have remained silent about the attacks until this point.
Support for the committee has gained steam in recent weeks as more information about the Obama administration’s multiple failures during and after the attack have come to light.
More than two-thirds of Republican House lawmakers, including several high-profile committee chairmen, now favor establishing the committee.