Washington, D.C. - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) has been going all out to defend his brother’s national security record in recent days, responding to Donald Trump’s assertions that former President George W. Bush should assume more responsibility for the 9/11 terrorist attacks that took place during his term.

Jeb Bush has insisted that his brother bears no blame for 9/11; it’s how he reacted that matters. At the same time, however, Republicans continue to blame Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for the 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, which occurred while she was secretary of state.

CNN “State of the Union” host Jake Tapper pressed the presidential candidate on this contradiction on Sunday, asking him, “[If] your brother and his administration bear no responsibility at all, how do you then make the jump that President Obama and Secretary Clinton are responsible for what happened at Benghazi?”

Bush replied that the State Department had a duty to ensure that there was proper security at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi. “There were calls for security. It looks like they didn’t get it,” Bush said. “And how was the response in the aftermath of the attack? Was there a chance that these four American lives could have been saved? That’s what the investigation is about. It’s not a political issue.”

Trump has repeatedly said that he doesn’t blame George W. Bush for 9/11. Yet at the same time, he argues, it’s dishonest for the former president’s backers to say he “kept us safe,” but only look at his record after the disastrous attacks.

Jeb Bush has pushed back against that criticism. “Mr. Trump is probably going to say that FDR was around when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor,” he said Sunday on CNN. “Does anybody actually blame my brother for the attacks on 9/11? If they do, they’re totally marginalized in our society.”