Republican challenger Mitt Romney said Tuesday that the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans illustrated the failure of President Barack Obama's foreign policy, DPA reported.
"This was an attack by terrorists," Romney said, questioning the Obama administrations initial claims that the incident arose from a mob protesting an anti-Islam film. "This calls into question the president's entire policy in the Middle East."
Obama said ultimate responsibility for the safety of diplomats lay with him and rejected remarks by Romney that he had instead focussed on politics.
"Secretary (of State Hillary Rodham) Clinton has done an extraordinary job, but she works for me. I'm the president and I'm always responsible," he said amid ongoing questions about whether the State Department had ignored requests for more security at the Benghazi compound. "That's why no one is more interested in finding out exactly what happened than me."