Rep. Tom Cole (R., Okla.) called the independent review of the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya "a very damning indictment of State Department performance" Wednesday on CNN.
"Obviously that's an administration responsibility," Cole said. "Look, we lost four great Americans here. We had adequate warning. We clearly didn't do anything to respond to the warning. I don't think we did a good job, you know, during the incident itself, and I think we've been less than honest up to this point with the American people. But this report is at least a step in the right direction. It's putting the facts on the table. There's obviously some things that ought to be done. In the end, this is on the President and Secretary Clinton's watch. They bear a measure of responsibility here."
While host Soledad O'Brien said the report stated no one willfully ignored their duties, Cole rejected the notion that absolved anyone of responsibility.
"I have no doubt nobody intended for this to happen, but to say nobody is responsible is something else," he said. "It's negligent."