The truth is that Chris’s mission was to help build a partnership between the United States and the Libyan people and to help rebuild the country. That’s what brought him to Benghazi, first as a special envoy in 2011 and then as ambassador in September 2012. He knew the dangers better than anyone else, yet he believed his mission was too important not to carry out to the fullest of his abilities. The attacks that claimed his life and those of three other brave Americans were crimes and tragedies of the greatest magnitude. The blame rests entirely and unquestionably on those who carried out the attacks.

The promotion of utterly false conspiracy theories are offensive, to me, to the truth and to Chris’s memory. The political attacks based on the events of that night portray Chris not as the hero and leader that he was but as the pawn and the victim of incompetence or worse in Washington.

Chris does not deserve to have his legacy undermined in this way. The mission of the United States in Libya in 2011 and 2012 was noble, and Chris was its most lovable and effective champion. That the attack created chaos on the ground in Benghazi I know first-hand. It also left Libyans with a crisis of faith in our own politics and society. Chris’s loss was a blow to both our countries.

To allow a cloud of false and misguided allegations to remain over Chris would be to compound that loss. His memory and mission must be given the true honor and recognition they deserve.

You wouldn’t buy a 1994 car, but our trade debate is stuck on a 1994 trade deal. Since the implementation of the NAFTA in 1994, the United States has concluded trade deals with 17 countries. Just as the quality of automobiles or computers has vastly improved since 1994, so have our trade deals. Modern deals, all concluded post 2000, have improved as a result of the lessons we learned from NAFTA. These new deals have strong labor standards that benefit U.S. workers, while NAFTA did not. These new deals have environmental protections in the agreements, while NAFTA did not. Enforcement measures have been strengthened as has access to foreign markets. We’ve come a very long way since NAFTA.

By 2030, the world economy is expected to grow by roughly $60 trillion, with almost 90% of that growth occurring outside the United States. Meanwhile, the United States derives a smaller share of its GDP from exports than 38 of 40 of the largest world economies. There is no path to middle-class prosperity without increasing exports.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the largest trade deal in history, will soon be before Congress. Policymakers will rightly be asking: How does this deal help America, and how does it help the middle class? There will be attempts to compare it to NAFTA, but TPP is a far cry from NAFTA. The labor, environmental, and human rights provisions are considered the strongest ever. Tariffs are reduced on over 18,000 goods. And for the first time in any trade deal, there are standards for the internet economy, protections against state-owned enterprises, and rules to stop currency manipulation. TPP is, in fact, much stronger than any modern trade deal, and those modern deals—as we show below—are already delivering.