Romney scrapped Benghazi ad in final weeks of campaign

Mitt
Romney’s presidential campaign spiked an ad during the final weeks of the 2012 campaign that would have criticized President Obama’s handling of the terrorist attack in Benghazi, a source with knowledge of the ad confirmed to The Hill.

The television spot was created by the Republican National Committee and played off the
famous “3 a.m.” attack ad that Hillary Clinton aired against
Obama during the 2008 campaign.

“It’s 3 a.m. and your children are safe and asleep, but there’s a
phone in the White House and it’s ringing. Something’s happening in the
world,” a voiceover in the ad says as images of a building burning are
shown and gunfire is heard in the background. The ad then displays text that reads: “Security
requests denied. Four Americans dead. And an administration whose story
is still changing.”

“The call came. Americans deserve answers,” the final text of the ad reads.

{mosads}According to the source with knowledge of the ad’s creation, the
Romney campaign stopped it from airing for fear that it would shift
the focus away from the economy.

ABC News first reported the existence of the ad on Thursday.

Republicans
have repeatedly criticized Obama and other top
administration officials for their handling of the Sept. 11 attack on the Benghazi consulate, which left four people dead, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.

A number of Republican-controlled congressional committees have
investigated the attack and lawmakers are urging Speaker John
Boehner (R-Ohio) to create a select committee to investigate it.