May 22, 2013

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Reporter: From Wire Reports

White House: Problems that contributed to Benghazi deaths need to be fixed

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House is reacting for the first time to a report from a high-level panel that looked into the attack in Benghazi, Libya in which four Americans died. The report said management failures at the State Department led to insufficient security at the consulate.

White House Spokesman Jay Carney says what happened was "clearly unacceptable," and problems need to be fixed.

A top State Department official told lawmakers today that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is putting into place 29 recommendations from the review board. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns told a Senate panel, "We learned some very hard and painful lessons in Benghazi."

Republicans sparred with Burns and another top State Department official over whether warning signs were ignored, and why the department didn't ask Congress for more money to boost security at the mission.

Since the attack, Democrats have complained that Republicans cut $300 million from the Obama administration's budget request of $2.6 billion for diplomatic and embassy security this year. Boxer said, "You can't protect a facility without the funding."

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)