In the midst of her Benghazi testimony, Hillary Clinton herself has offered the most damning evidence of why having a private server and a non-State Department email address was not only ill-advised and violated the spirit, if not the letter, of the law, it also was a security issue. And not the security issue for her emails – it was a security issue for Ambassador Chris Stevens.

During questioning by Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA), Hillary admitted that her “friend,” Chris Stevens, had no way to personally contact her via email, because she didn’t have a State Department email address.

Westmoreland makes the point that Stevens' many security requests didn't reach Clinton. "Did he have your personal email?" #Benghazi

— Stephen Hayes (@stephenfhayes) October 22, 2015

Effective point: Stevens was HRC personal friend, in a dangerous place, requesting more security, & didn't have HRC email. Blumenthal did.

— Stephen Hayes (@stephenfhayes) October 22, 2015

First time HRC on her heels. HRC friend Chris Stevens desperately called for more security but couldn't get through to HRC- Blumenthal could

— Stephen Hayes (@stephenfhayes) October 22, 2015

. @HillaryClinton says she was "thousands of miles away" from attack. This wouldn't have been a problem if she had an email in the system

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) October 22, 2015

Bingo! Chris Stevens didn't have an email for Hillary! SHE WASNT IN THE NORMAL SYSTEM.

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) October 22, 2015

Breaking: Sid Blumenthal had @HillaryClinton's email address, Chris Stevens did not.

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) October 22, 2015

And that line of questioning was followed up on by Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS).

Pompeo says more than 600 requests re security issues in #Benghazi in 2012 – HRC says not a single one reached her desk

— Shannon Bream (@ShannonBream) October 22, 2015

So, only special friends got Hillary’s personal email, and because Chris Stevens wasn’t special enough, he had no way to make a personal appeal to her to push his requests for more security.

Is it a stretch to say that Hillary’s insistence on secrecy and shielding of her email accounts may have cost Stevens his life? It most certainly created a disconnect between her and the “friend” that she said she sent into a dangerously fluid situation.

. @HillaryClinton says she tried to call ChrisStevens on the night of attack….had she had an email address she would have seen his pleas.

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) October 22, 2015

The American people will have to be the judge. Ambassador Stevens is unavailable for comment.