I used to handle the tort litigation nationwide for a major corporation.  I remember one particular claim where the local representatives worked with senior management to investigate a claim before they turned it over to my department.  I was presented with a book, about 5 inches think.  It was very entertaining, with a cast of characters right out of the “Godfather.”  But the problem was that in spite of the volume of speculation there were very few documented facts.  I had to start over and re-investigate the claim from day one.  Even where they basically got the story right, they have fallen far short of the standard of documentation necessary to prove up the file.

I believe this is very similar to the Benghazi file inherited by Trey Gowdy.  He has a lot of e-mails, and colorful testimony before congressional committees.  But he is a long way from having a properly documented investigation.  That is why you haven’t heard from him for a while.  His people are going back to square one.  They are reading the source documents and probably interviewing people.  He will save the public testimony for things that really matter.  When someone is called before this committee they better be prepared, because Trey Gowdy will be prepared.  There will be no repeat of the silly season where Democrats don’t ask any questions at all and Republicans ask “have you stopped beating your wife yet” gottcha questions.  Neither is the least bit effective at getting to the facts.

One of the things I quickly learned was to pay attention to the details.  Sometimes an investigator will ask a question that seems to be irrelevant to the subject at hand, but it is extremely relevant to the credibility of the witness.  I can give an example.  We had a plaintiff that was a well-known highly-decorated Vietnam Veteran.  However, when I read his deposition it was obvious to me that he had never actually served in Vietnam.  He was using terminology that no real Vietnam Veteran would ever use.  So I contacted my attorneys and told them of my suspicions.  They were shocked, because this guy was a local celebrity and was on TV all the time.  Reluctantly, they did investigate and quickly discovered that this guy was a fraud.  He had not only never served in a combat position; he had never even been to Vietnam.

A trained investigator is a very dangerous person.   It is nothing like what you see on TV where some tough good guy intimidates criminals into confessing all.   In real life that rarely works.  The good investigator focuses on the details.  It is quite simple.  People who are lying almost always get some of the seemingly minor details wrong.  Those who are just telling the truth don’t have that problem.  Trey Gowdy is starting the process by double checking the details.  That makes him and his committee very dangerous.  I believe he will expose the truth on Benghazi.  If the truth is as bad as some of us suspect, then we are experiencing the calm before the storm.

TDM