State Department official who pushed to change Benghazi storyline up for promotion

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Fox News:

The State Department official who played a key role in massaging the Obama administration's storyline on the Benghazi attack has been put up for a promotion -- a move that could trigger a heated confirmation battle on the Hill.

Victoria Nuland was nominated Thursday by President Obama for the position of assistant secretary for European and Eurasian affairs at the State Department.

A promotion for the former State Department spokeswoman had long been expected. But Nuland's name recently became more closely tied to the Benghazi controversy after emails showed she pushed to have key lines stripped from the administration's talking points in the days after the attack.

Nuland will have to face confirmation from the Senate, and some lawmakers have indicated they will mount a vigorous opposition.

But the career Foreign Service officer and former ambassador to NATO is also well-regarded in some circles, as an official in both Democratic and Republican administrations. She also served as a foreign policy adviser to former Vice President Dick Cheney.

Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., two of the biggest critics on the Hill of the administration's Benghazi response, said in a statement Friday that Nuland has a "long and distinguished record of service" to the country.

"She is knowledgeable and well-versed on the major foreign policy issues as well as respected by foreign policy experts in both parties," they said.

________

 

Don't blame the massager?