Maureen Groppe

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — House Republicans blamed the rushed evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Libya on poor leadership by the Obama administration and said Saturday's withdrawal will complicate any plans to restore order there.

The top Republicans on the House committees that oversee foreign affairs and intelligence noted that while they were grateful the diplomats are now safe, the crisis at hand reflects poor leadership by the White House.

California Rep. Ed Royce, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers, who leads the House Intelligence panel, said it never should have gotten to this point.

"This deteriorating security posture is the same scenario playing out across Northern Africa, the Middle East, and Eurasia," Rogers said. "This is what happens when the United States is not engaged and lacks a clear foreign policy that includes strong U.S. leadership."

Royce said the evacuation was predictable, "given the lack of direction and leadership from this administration since it ousted (former Libyan dictator) Moammar Gadhafi."

All embassy personnel were evacuated under cover of American warplanes and spy aircraft as security deteriorated in the capital of Tripoli.

"Our diplomatic absence will make the hard task of achieving political stability in Libya even harder," Royce said. "When security conditions permit the return of our diplomats, the administration must give them a new charge to help end the fighting and move Libya forward."

Secretary of State John Kerry said Saturday that the U.S. remains "deeply committed" to the diplomatic process in Libya. He emphasized that the embassy is not closing, but suspending activities because of the amount of violence in Tripoli. Diplomatic work will continue from other locations.

"We will continue to try to build out of the election the legitimacy of the government formation and the efforts to end the violence," Kerry said of last month's parliamentary elections. "We call on all Libyans to engage in the political process and to come together in order to avoid the violence."

Gary Schmitt, a director of the American Enterprise Institute's Marilyn Ware Center for Security Studies, said the administration is in a bind because a substantial American presence of military troops and State Department teams would be required to help the Libyans establish some governance and stability.

"Once you take that step, then you will be adding personnel and they just don't want to look like they're repeating anything like Iraq," Schmitt said.

Michael O'Hanlon, an expert on foreign policy and U.S. defense strategy at the Brookings Institution, said the U.S. needs to increase its commitment if it wants Libya to succeed.

"Our Libya mission is floundering, and what was a success three years ago is no longer a success," O'Hanlon said. "Perhaps it can be reclaimed, but only with a concerted and much stronger effort, including a more robust and ambitious training program for the Libyan army and police."

The administration had previously suspended operations at the embassy during the 2011 civil war that toppled Gadhafi but left a destabilized country. In 2012, militants attacked the U.S. consulate in Benghazi and killed four Americans, including ambassador Christopher Stevens.

Schmitt said those deaths make more sensitive the judgment calls about keeping American personnel in Libya.

"They're more likely to err on the side of caution and security," he said.