I've always believed that every word said by a politician was the truth. And that all politicians always had the public interest in heart. We all agree on that. Right?

Now, because of the Benghazi hearings, I know that my belief was not correct. I also know that the Clintons' claim of a right wing conspiracy is true. What more proof do we need than the disclosure that the cleansing of U. N. Ambassador's Susan Rice's Benghazi remarks was at the behest of the State Department's Victoria Nuland. And what does Nuland's resume include? Being a former aide to none other than extreme "Mr. Right Winger," Dick Cheney.

My bubble has been burst. 

Never again will I believe that President Reagan knew nothing of the Iran Contra affair.

Never again will I believe that Rose Mary Woods erased the 18-and-a-half minutes from the Nixon tapes by mistake.

Never again will I believe that President Bush really believed that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

Never again will I believe anything said by Rush.

Never again will I believe anything reported on Fox News.

Never again will I believe that global warming is a liberal plot.

Never again will I believe that "the way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun."

Never again will I disbelieve anything said on MSNBC.

Never again will I disbelieve anything said by Rev. Al.

Never again will I disbelieve anything said by President Obama is not the "whole truth and nothing but the truth."

Never again will I disbelieve the Republicans when they say everything the Democrats do is politically motivated.

Never again will I disbelieve the Democrats when they say everything the Republicans do is politically motivated.

Of course, what the Republican's Benghazi hearings and their constant echo of an unproved cover-up proves is that they smell political blood for both the 2014 and 2016 elections.  Whether you believe that there was a White House cover-up or just incompetency in handling the situation depends upon your political leanings. 

I do know that the Republicans are trying to smear Hillary Clinton and stop her from running for president.  But recent reporting from reliable news sources indicates that the entire Benghazi story hasn't yet been told. Even hearings headed by such an arch-partisan blood hound as GOP congressman and House Oversight Committee Chair Darrell Issa, is warranted.

The mess that the Obama administration and Clinton find themselves in are largely  self-inflicted by letting Rice spew talking points that were rewritten numerous times until any  mention of terrorism was eliminated.  The non-mention of terrorism in the talking points smelled like rotten fish from the get-go.

But who are the real losers in this "gotcha game" of politics.  It's not the Democrats because they will always get the opportunity to get even.  It's not the Republicans because they will always get the opportunity to get even.  It's the American people.

Ever since Nixon was forced to resign, instead of being thrown out of office by a senate vote, the Republicans have been trying to get even by attempting to thwart every legislative effort and block every Democratic nominee. Adding to the GOP resentment was Bill Clinton's two-term presidency, after Karl Rove predicted that the Republicans would control the White House for a generation.  But what really drove Republicans crazy were Obama's two victories.  People forget that the Tea Party didn't materialize until Obama was victorious.

As a result of the continuous witch hunting by both parties Congress is in a constant stalemate.  The name of the game is no longer doing what's best for the country; it's doing what's best for their party.

The question that will be with us at least until after the 2016 presidential election will be "What did Obama and Hillary know about what really happened at Benghazi and when did they know it?" 

The entire mess could have been avoided if the administration would have followed what I believe is the most important advice any crisis specialist can give to a client.  "Immediately tell the truth.  Chances are it will eventually come out any way."

Pete Seeger once sang, "When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?" Indeed.

And then came the news that the I.R.S. was targeting conservative groups. Together with the Benghazi mess that has entangled the Obama administration it would seem that the GOP has a clear path to the White House in 2016.  Short term the White House might be weakened.

But the Democrats have a secret weapon that might have them retain the oval office in 2016: the Republicans constant slash and burn political attacks.

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solomonArthur Solomon, a former journalist, was a senior VP/senior counselor at Burson-Marsteller, and was responsible for restructuring, managing and playing key roles on national and international sports and non-sports programs. He now is a frequent contributor to public relations and sports business publications, consults on public relations projects and is on the Seoul Peace Prize nominating committee. He can be reached at [email protected].