3 3 this sounds like something straight out of a horror flick. A family in minnesota has a giant t octopus in their front yard. 3 but the 18foot monster is a snow sculpture created by three brothers. They make a new sculpture in new brighton every winter to raise money for charity. The brothers last year and a snow shark two years ago. It took them fivehundred hours this year to make the massive squid. Their goal is to raise 10thousand dollars for 3 bringing clean water to haiti. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] sharyl hello, im sharyl attkisson. Welcome to full measure. Today, new information about what may be the most confounding mystery surrounding the benghazi controversy why no outside u. S. Military help came to the two compounds and the americans inside over nearly eight hours. Four americans were killed, including ambassador Chris Stevens anandiplomat sean smith, along with glen doherty and ty woods, both former navy seals. In recent days, the House Benghazi Committee heard from key figures in closedoor testimony. David petraeus and former defense secretary leon panetta. Hear from a third official that few have probably heard of nse department chief of staff, whose email happens to be central to our report t its an email he sent from the military to the state department enghazi attacks one thats been kept from public view for three years and lends evidence to allegations of a rescue interrupted. Assistance. We are overrun. If you do not get here soon we are all gonna die. Sharyl the film 13 hours the opens later this week. None of you have to go. But we are the only help they have. Sharyl its the harrowing account of six ciaiaeam members in an annex about a mile from the benghazi compound when it fell under attack. They cla when they tried to go to the rescue, their boss delaye youre not the first responders, youre the last resort. Sharyl now, an email hidden from public view for three years reveals anototr rescue attempt was apparently interrupted. The military offered to deploy special forces to benghazi during the assault long before the atckers killed cia contractors and former Navy Seals Glen doherty and ty woods. Three and a half hours into the eighthour long siege, the militarys chief of staff jeremy bash emails Top State Department officials we have identified the forces that could move to benghazi. They are spinning up as we Operations Forces element that was in croatia. Col. Wood theyre spun up as we speak means that hes made contact with them, theyve confirmed that theyve been given that order, and theyre making progress toward going to that location. Sharyl retired ar cololnel andrew wood commanded a special forces Antiterrorism Team protecting ambassador Chris Stevens and other diplomats in libya. In 2 2012, wood told congress his team was removed from libya by the Obama Administration a month before the attacks, despite warnings of terrrrist violence to come. R the first time, woods speaking out with a startling claim that those special forces offered in the military email were on their way to benghazi but were turned back. Col. Wood those individuals i know loaded aircraft and got on their way to benghazi to respond to that incident. They were not allowed to cross commander in chief. That authority has got to come from him. Otherwise, theyre not allowed theyre not allowed to go further into the country. I have a high degree of confidence that that happened, based on information t tt ive heard from individuals that were there. Those forces were put into motion. They simply were not allowed to go further. Sharyl the white house has refused to detail the involvement of president obama, the commander in chief, while americans were under attack on foreign soil. Following a shorbr the beginning of the assault, he virtually disappears from the public narrative. The white house declined to comment fofor this report, but has long denieany assets were available or ready, and said Everything Possible was done. Yet the email indicates special forces were ready and highranking Obama Administration officials, or princals, were to weigh in. Assuming principals agree to deploy these elements, we will ask state to secure the proval tells the state department. Pleas convey that approval to us. Libyas approval for thehe. S. Forces to fly in to help. The availability of special forces is news to greg hicks, the top u. S. Diplomat in tripoli during t in 2013, hicks testified he repeatedly told there was no military help available. Mr. Hicks i asked the Defense Attache whod been talking with africom and with the joint staff is anything coming . Will they be sending us any help . Is there something out there . Sharyl responding to the newly public email, hicks tells full measure an aggressive interpretation of the military options presented would have tasked me with obtaining flight and landing clearances from the libyan government. I have no doubt they would have been granted. Sharyl the significan of this memo, would you say . Significant, and you would understand why the administration wouldnt want people to see that those elements within the government that were tasked with the protection of lives and property, actually started the process and were stopped. Sharyl Gary Berntsen is a former cia Senior Operations officer and chief of station. He commanded Counterterrorism Missions and led the Response Team after islamic extremists bombed u. S. Embassies in east africa in 1998. Like wood, berntsen says Quick Reaction military teams are tasked to handle emergencies exactly li automatitically spin up unless and until theyre stopped. Gary berntsen you proceed because if theres an emergency and americans are at risk americans have died or are under the threat of death or a threat of kidnapping or any kind of violence were moving. Sharyl a military srce familiar with some of the nights events also confirms military options were provided. There were both conventional and assigned to africom offered up by genel ham on a video teleconference. Based on what i know, the forces they were talking about could have gotten there pretty quickly. Gary berntsen only political instructions from above would have stopped them. There is, you know, no one is going to wait. That is my experience, of having done this for almost 25 years, having led the teams myself, youre proceeding, youre going. Sharyl when we come back what obama officials have said about the military response that night and we ask why a rescue would have been interrupted. Was any dodsset ever deployed to help these peoplee sharyl we continue with questions overerhether benghazi invovoed a rescue interrupupd and a newlyrevealed emaild offered up a special forces team to deploy to benghazi during the attacks long before the last two americans were murdered. But the Obama Administration never sought approval for their planes to fly into libya. Is under attack. Lets go, man. Sharyl the upcoming film 13 hours the secret soldiers of benghazi recounts the story of cia agents who say they were prevented from going to the immediate rescue of the americans under attack a mile away. And no outside military came to but now, an internal government email shows u. S. Special forces t far away had spun up during the attack. And sources say, they were headed to benghazi but were stopped. The new details may help explain why congress had so much trouble getting direct answers from obama officials who insisted a rescue attempt was impossible. When questioned in 2013, general martin dempsey, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, and secretary leon panetta of the department of defense or dod gave no hint that special forces had actually spun up. Graham was any dod asset ever deployed to help these people bebere the end of the attack . Dempsey would you rephrase, would you . Graham was any dod asset , aircraft or individual attack was over . I could as soon as we knew there wawaan attack the National Mission force and the fast teams began. Graham my question is did anybody leave any base anywhere to go to the aid of the people under attack in benghazi, libya before the attack ended . Panetta no because the attack ended before we could get off the ground. Dep. Sec. Burns thehe simply wasnt enough timimat that point to bring u. S. Military forces. Hillary clinton their assets were too far away to make much difference in any timely fashion. Admiral mullen there simply was not enough time for u. S. Military forces to have made a difference. Sharyl adding to the claims of a rescue interrupted the leader of a Foreign Emergency Support Team in n e u. S. Earlier testified his squad, too, was stopped from responding and a small u. S. Military team in tripoli was ordered not to board a plane for benghazi during the attacks. Wood says it all implies a decision at the highest level. Military wouldve gotten in position to respond five hours before the benghazi attacks when the u. S. F fed a related csis islamic extremists overran the amican embassy in cairo, egypt. Col. Wood their compound had been breached and there were people now inside their buildings under protection of marine guards waiting for someone to bust into the rooms. To me, that would signal somebody should be getting those Reaction Forces ready to stand by and perhaps move. And then five hours later, when things occurred in benghazi, and again, the alarm bell went off, and there was no apparent response thats thats a pretty tough one to explain with with events transpiring in cairo, at the embassy in cairo, not to react may have been made very early on in the day, when those transpiring. So that by the time that benghazi happened, it wasnt going to happen because that decision wadas made early on. Sharyl if so, why isnt clear. But the attacks came eight weeks before the 2012 election. President obama had campaigned on the idea hed sent terrorists running. Pres. Obama alqaeda is on the path to defeat and Osama Bin Laden is dead. Sharyl critics say deploying the military to terrorist attacks could have been viewed as more harmful to the campaign than the incorrect explanation the administration gave that protesters attacked after being whipped up by an antiislamic youtube video. I know, i understand. Sharyl a special forces soldier for 24 years, wood says his team and u. S. Diplomats in libya were briefed that if they evever got into trouble, those special forces in europe were tasked with coming to the rescue. Col. Wood theyre kept in a high state of readiness just for that purpose. Ready to jump, theyre like the fire department, in any town, in any city in the United States. Sharyl to illustrate how close the u. S. Special forces in croatia were, a commercial flight taking off at the start of the benghazi attacks with an hour and a half layover in turkey, still could have arrived in libya before wowoods and doherty were killed. Ial forces offered up by the military ended up at the u. S. Naval base at sigonella, italy instead of benghazi. And in a delay that remains unexplained, it took 1hours from the time the military said theyd spun up for them to make that hour and a half flight from croatia to italy, far too late to help. Col. Wood i operated there under the belief that those reactition forces would be there for us if we got into some kind of trouble like what happened. Sharyl two groups of testimony given under oath by Government Forces that could have responded quickly, and that even if they couldnt have gotten there in time to make a difference. Gary berntsen i dont believe either of those reflect the truth of what occurred on the ground there. They had forces moving, they could have intervened, they should have intervened, anhad they, we likely would have been in a position to save the second two men who bravely sacrificed their lives. Sharyl the state department has said, the notion that it did not do Everything Possible to protect our people that night is as offensive as it is wrong. Theres one piece of evidence that could help in the debate the military after action reports dissecting the military response. But the pentagon has refused congressional and media requests to see them. Still ahead on full measure the president calls for action on gs and gets a tremendous reaction. Sharyl president obama began the new year with a sign that he would not go gently into his lame duck year. His call to action on gun control signals what may be a busy year to further what he considers key issues to his administration and legacac so we might expect a number of executive actions or executive orders. The difference makes a difference. Scott thuman has a little our reality check. Scott on his first day of his last year in office, president obama called on congress to take action on gun control. Cant stop every act of violence. But what if we tried to stop even one . Scott the media and politicians went into overdrivdr the president of the United States may come out with an executive order regarding guns. The president set to y out a series of executive orders. Im very proud of president obamas announcement. On my first day behind that desk, those orders are gone. Pres. Obama until we have a congress thats in line with the actions within my Legal Authority that we can take to help reduce gun vience and save more lives. Scott the president s plan to tighten control and increase enforcement of firearm laws in the u. S. By expanding background checks is an executive action not an executive order. And yes, theres a difference, explains stephen j. Wayne, professosoof government at georgetown universitity. Prof. Wayne when he issues an order, its usually a broade statement of in the future i want it to happen this way. When he issues a memorandum or a directive or makes a statement, its much more specific, but they are mainly ceremonini. And they dont have the policy impact. Scott in his action, obama is bypassing congress and earning him some criticism. Represen texas calls it a distraction and disservice to the american people. Scott are you all just being pushed on the sidelines as the rep. Babin well, he would certainly like to have it like th Founding Fathers set this and thats not the way the constitution reads. Scott some democrats, including rep. Mike thompson of california, have come to obamas defense. Rep. Thompson the critics of president obamas executive action say that hes overstepping his boundaries, he thinks hes the king, and then the same folksay its okay to take arms and overrun a government building. Its a real contradiction. Scott this isnt the firsrst time the president has taken heat for overstepping congress. Prof. Wayne institutional and popotical rivalries will generate debate over executive orders. Pres. Obama the truth is, even with all the actions ive taken this year, im issuing executive orders at the lowest rate in more than 100 years. So, its not clear how it is mind when president bush took more ecutive actions than i did. Scott he has a point maybe president george w. Bush issued nearly 300 executive orders during his two terms in office. But obama isnt too far behind hes at nearly 230 so far and vowi president obama has warned he will not sit idly by on the sidelines during his final year and its a safe bet he will outline even more new actions in his state of the union speech, tuesday night. Sharyl thank you, scott. An update to breaking bad, our report on the billion dollar federal agen, nist, that got caught with a meth lab operating in its midst. Christopher bartley, the nist Police Lieutenant who was operating the lab when it blew week. He was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison. Congress is investigating whatican calls the culture misconduct at nist Police Services from alleged timecard which nist denies. Still ahead on full measure it is mustsee tv for the campaign season. Next, a closer look at the substance of debates past and the profits of reality tv sharyl the real heat ofea the president ial campaigns begins in february 1st kicks off the iowa caucuses. Candidates from both parties debate this week at separate events in south carolina. There was a rumor once that the debates were more for issues and ideas and less for political theater. The numbers s y paint a different picture in this edition of campaign incredible. The moment of truth has arrived. Welcome to the first debate night of the 2016 president ial campaign. Sharyl theyre filled with memorable moments. Excuse me. One second. No. Sharyl thehes a cast of colorful characters. Bernie sanders americas sick of hearing about your damn emails sharyl and there are sudden eliminations. Howie if this is a reality show campaign, then the televised debates are like survivor with people getting kicked off the island. Sharyl but this isnt reality tv, its 2016 president ial politics. Howie kurtz, media critic and host of Fox News Media buzz says the debates have become the grand stage for candidates and to some extent t have replaced or overshadowed traditional campaigning. Primary debates have become a staple in modern day politics predating perhaps the most famous general debate in american history. The rsed federal aid for education. Sharyl that was when n young and suntanned jack kennedy was given the win in the first televised debate over richard nixon. Nixon was awarded the win by radio listeners. Sharyl primary debates can produce memorable moments. I am paying for this microphone mr. [cheers and applause] [laughter] youre likable enough, hillary. Lets see i, i cant name the third oops. Sharyl so, how much interest have this elections debates generated . When it comes to ratings, americans are watching in record numbers. Democrats have held three of six planned primary debates with each averaging about 10. 8 Million People watching. In termsmsf viewers, republicans are winning by huge margins. Close to halfway through its 12