Former Vice President Dick Cheney began the first major address since his alleged retirement by mocking President Obama – his sparring partner in Thursday's dueling national security speeches – for flapping his jaws too long, for a total of 49 minutes. Cheney then continued to berate our commander-in-chief... for a mere 36 minutes. It was that kind of day.
Cheney presented himself as a forthright fellow – free at last to be even more forthright. But with a couple of exceptions – notably, when he accused the New York Times of making America less safe – the only difference between what he said today and what he's been saying since 9/11 was quantitative: I think it was because he went on at greater length that he came off as more sarcastic.
Improbably, he led off with a jab at Al Gore. "I had the advantage of being a vice president content with the responsibilities I had, and going about my work with no higher ambition,'' he said. Unlike others he could name, in other words. The only time I had a conversation with Cheney, on his campaign plane in 2000, I remember being taken aback by the personal nature of his criticism of Gore, and that animus clearly hasn't faded.
"Today, I'm an even freer man...a career in politics behind me, no elections to win or lose, and no favor to seek.'' Except, of course, that of history. There seemed to be at least a glimmer of the feeling that, "Hey, we're all Americans,'' in his comment that though he was not speaking for President Bush, "I am certain that no one wishes the current administration more success in defending the country than we do.'' But, oh well, he then went on to say that the difference of opinion over what to do with detainees at Guantanamo was merely the difference between those who take the terror threat seriously and those who think the 9/11 attacks were a one-time event we needn't worry about ever being repeated. That no member of the current administration – or anybody, anywhere that I'm aware of – has ever argued any such thing made it harder to take the rest of what he said seriously.
But it was still fascinating to hear him explain why the Bush-Cheney White House acted as it did, and why he views Obama's presidency as such a disaster. First came the anorexic praise: "When President Obama makes wise decisions, as I believe he has done in some respects on Afghanistan,'' by expanding operations there, "he deserves our support.'' (Does that mean Cheney acknowledges we should have stayed in Afghanistan in greater force in the first place, instead of diverting resources to Iraq? No.)
In arguing against most of Obama's national security decisions, Cheney said, "The point is not to look backward,'' but to help our new president move forward more prudently. "And whatever choices he makes concerning the defense of this country, those choices should not be based on slogans and campaign rhetoric, but on a truthful telling of history.'' That last remark may have been the only thing Cheney said today that President Obama himself would agree with.
His march through history started with an elbow to Bill Clinton's ribs: "Throughout the 90s, America had responded to (terror) attacks, if at all, on an ad hoc basis. The first attack on the World Trade Center was treated as a law enforcement problem,'' he said, "with everything handled after the fact – crime scene, arrests, indictments, convictions, prison sentences, case closed....but for the terrorists the case was not closed.''
Easily the most sympathetic part of the speech was when Cheney evoked his own experience on 9/11, and sketched the picture of himself in a White House bunker, afraid for America: "As you might recall, I was in my office in that first hour, when radar caught sight of an airliner heading toward the White House at 500 miles an hour. That was Flight 77, the one that ended up hitting the Pentagon. With the plane still inbound, Secret Service agents came into my office and said we had to leave, now. A few moments later I found myself in a fortified White House command post somewhere down below.''
There's no reason to doubt how terrifying and transformational that moment was, and Cheney acknowledged as much, even while denying it: "In the years since, I've heard occasional speculation that I'm a different man after 9/11. I wouldn't say that. But I'll freely admit that watching a coordinated, devastating attack on our country from an underground bunker at the White House can affect how you view your responsibilities.'' Fair enough; no one else has been where he was that day.
But the public overwhelmingly questions the conclusions he's drawn from that experience – especially that we were safer as a result of Bush-era policies, until we became less safe again, thanks to Obama.
Cheney made the familiar argument that since there have been no more attacks on U.S. soil, his administration must have done the right thing. "One thing we know is that the enemy has spent most of this time on the defensive – and every attempt to strike inside the United States has failed.'' Only, there is little info and considerable disagreement about what attempts he's talking about.
Here's what he calls "the great dividing line'' in our current national debate: Either you think the Bush strategy worked and thus ought to be continued, or "you can look at the same set of facts and conclude that 9/11 was a one-off event – coordinated, devastating, but also unique and not sufficient to justify a sustained wartime effort.''
Oddly -- no, inexplicably -- Cheney maintained that Adm. Dennis Blair, director of National Intelligence, feels that harsh interrogation methods on terror suspects provided us with a "deeper understanding of the al-Queda organization.'' Only, back on this planet, what Blair really said is that "there is no way of knowing whether the same information could have been obtained through other means. The bottom line is that these techniques hurt our image around the world. The damage they have done to our interests far outweighs whatever benefits they gave us.''
Cheney also defended the NSA's warrantless wiretapping program, which he said had "prevented attacks and saved lives.'' And he essentially charged the New York Times with treason for exposing it in 2005: "The program was top secret, and for good reason, until the editors of the New York Times got it and put it on the front page. After 9/11, the Times had spent months publishing the pictures and the stories of everyone killed by al-Qaeda on 9/11. Now here was that same newspaper publishing secrets in a way that could only help al-Qaeda. It impressed the Pulitzer committee, but it damn sure didn't serve the interests of our country, or the safety of our people.'' OK, we lost sight of Osama, but we know where Arthur Sulzberger lives! No one can say that the former vice president isn't single-minded in the pursuit of his perceived enemies in the media.
He went on to call enhanced interrogation techniques like waterboarding "legal, essential, justified, successful, and the right thing to do,'' and insisted that they had "prevented the violent death of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of innocent lives.'' He is still, as during the run-up to the war in Iraq, saying that if we knew what he knew, we'd agree with him. And if it were ever proven true, perhaps we would.
It's Obama, in his view, who is deliberately trying to mislead the public by releasing only certain "carefully redacted'' memos about the Bush-Cheney decisions on interrogation techniques -- to hide the truth about those hundreds of thousands of lives that were saved as a result of techniques defined as torture and banned under the Geneva Conventions. (A 2004 CIA inspector general's investigation found no conclusive proof that such techniques had prevented any attacks.)
Not surprisingly, he also came out against his own "criminalization.''
"Some are even demanding that those who recommended and approved the interrogations be prosecuted, in effect treating political disagreements as a prosecutable offense.'' He also spoke out against the "strange and sometimes willful attempt to conflate what happened at Abu Ghraib prison with the top secret program of enhanced interrogations.'' One was the work of a few sadists, he said, and the other highly controlled and well-executed by professionals. (A bipartisan Senate Armed Services Committee report found that the situation at Abu Ghraib grew out of practices authorized by top Bush officials, including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.)
He also painted the president as a mushy centrist, though that's what the country seems to like about him. He takes "comfort in hearing disagreement from opposite ends of the spectrum'' Cheney charged. Just as Bush and Cheney seemed to take comfort in disagreement from much of the spectrum.
The former vice president never raised his voice, or showed much affect period beyond the heavy sarcasm again on display when he said Obama's solution to terrorism was to simply redefine it out of existence: "Apparently using the term 'war' where terrorists are concerned is starting to feel a bit dated.'' He warned that closing Gitmo and bringing some of its detainees to this country, as Obama wants to do, would result in unimaginable tragedy.
Thanks to Obama's release of certain memos about Bush decisions on enhanced interrogation, he said, the "enemy now knows what to train against and what not to worry about." Though the public doesn't see it that way, Cheney seemed confident that "our administration will stand up well in history, not despite of our actions after 9/11, but because of it.'' His "is not a record to be rebuked and scorned, much less criminalized,'' he said bitterly, and slipped out of the room.
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hummmm... isn't it great that columnists can interject what they think and feel... Sure, the Obama administration hasn't said that terrorists are like mere murderers... but that appears how they wish to treat them. Sure, no one has said that the attacks of September 11 were a one time event, but they don't seem too concerned based on their willingness to declassify top secret intel-gathering operations... and now the terrorists don't only know what to protect against but know new techniques to use against anyone they capture. Beheading isn't the only tool they have anymore - thanks Obama et. al.
Know this, I didn't agree with all the Bush Admin. did or how they went about it... could have been done better and smarter. But, the Obama admin and congress has increased their lack of concern or representation for the common American and think we are a bunch of idiots that need to keep our nose out of the business of running our country. We should can them all and start anew with people that are honest, have integrity, morals, and treat ALL Americans fair. People that have the best interest of our nation at heart... and I do not believe we have that in our capitol and haven't had that for 20+ years.
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mybasketballgirl
8:30AM May 22nd 2009
Agree,this columnist Melinda spent the entire article with her opinion on what she said was said. I thought I might once read an article on what was said between the two men. Nope. This Melinda is another example of our media not giving us facts! Its all smoke n mirrors! Melinda can be reached at Melinda @ obama.com. Melinda, it is obvious you are suffering from "JUNGLE FEVER!"
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pate
12:38PM May 22nd 2009
I believe in most of what you said. But having information available for our enemy to see and use against didn't just start with Obama administration. Just look at how our media do segments or shows on our new weaponry and other stuff that i'm sure our enemies get a hand of devise plans around stuff pertaining to it. Some of my biggest fears is by us torturing these people, it fuels the conflict and if by any chance one of our own is caught in any country, they'll say well the US do it so why can't we. And will it end at just terrorists or will it spill into police interrogations. It can be somewhat understandable if done to an actually terrorist but what if an innocent man is tortured(which have been done and what raised the concern of all in the first place). We need to put ourselves in their shoes, b/c there are people out there that are prejudice and will believe that they all look alike or they all are the same. where's the right in that? Any man if tortured will crack and say anything to stop the torture.
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Rev Chris Miller
9:36PM May 21st 2009
Why wouldn't Cheney "be content" with his job as VP...he was actually running the country. All those cartoons about the puppet and puppet master were making a point.
And Al Gore had the decency, when his term was over, to SHUT UP for nearly 2 years. I wish Cheney would go back into his cave for a few years. By then ALL the facts will be out, and we'll all KNOW just how bad it was under his "reign".
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mikey9039691
6:41AM May 22nd 2009
2 years? 2 years? Perhaps Rev., you didn't hear his literally screaming charges that Bush BETRAYED America, occuring right after his loss. Clever how some only remember those things that serve their opinion. By the way, the "Honorable Veep" you praise went on to start a company selling carbon credits while pushing his "Global Warning" histronics. The British even banned his movie due to the inaccurate science. The sun got hotter, the earth got hotter. End of story. Honoraboe indeed!
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rdauen1452
9:13AM May 22nd 2009
Hey Rev Gore was quite because he had a nervous breakdown because he lost to a better man BUSH. He's a dope.
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j2202208
9:40PM May 21st 2009
The problem is that left wingers, liberals and democrats have conveniently blacked out the horrors of 9/11/01 - maybe its time for the footage of CITIZENS doing swan dives off the Twin Towers, the charred bodies at the Pentagon and the field full of charred body parts in Pennsylvania to remind them what has NOT OCCURED AGAIN, thanks to the efforts of the Bush Administration, the volunteer military, the thin blue line of law enforcement and fire fighting personnel despite the best efforts of the whining liberals to undermine them for the past 7 1/2 years.
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CherMoeLin
10:56PM May 21st 2009
Let's also not forget the horrors and terror instilled in all Americans when certain Democratic Senators got little letters with anthrax in their mail boxes because they didn't approve of the Patriot Act. The jury is still out on the true perpetrators and plotters of the acts that took place on 9/11. The person that was blamed within MINUTES of the planes hitting the towers, Osama Bin Laden, has never been captured ... yet, Saddam Hussein, who never had anything to do with it, was hunted down and dug out of a hole in the ground, had the speediest trial I've ever seen and was hung from a rope. Know why? Bin Laden was the "convenient" perpetrator, the boogeyman, and his "videos" were dragged out every time the Republicans needed to control Congress and the Americans to achieve and further their crimes and other agenda. It doesn't take much to connect the dots. Bin Laden has never been captured because he never really was the TARGET, and has probably been safely stashed away and protected by your former hero and his minions. He was only the means to the end and incredible riches for certain connected people.
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Gregory Dittmer
12:42AM May 22nd 2009
j2202208 9:40PM May 21st 2009 The problem is that left wingers, liberals and democrats have conveniently blacked out the horrors of 9/11/01 - maybe its time for the footage of CITIZENS doing swan dives off the Twin Towers, the charred bodies at the Pentagon and the field full of charred body parts in Pennsylvania to remind them what has NOT OCCURED AGAIN, thanks to the efforts of the Bush Administration, the volunteer military, the thin blue line of law enforcement and fire fighting personnel despite the best efforts of the whining liberals to undermine them for the past 7 1/2 years.
Do YOU actually think the ONLY people affected and concerned about 9/11 are right wingers?! The were no political implications of left or right when the planes slammed into the Towers. EVERY race, creed, religion and all political affiliations were amongst the dead that horrible day. NO ONE that happens to lean left of center has blocked or forgotten what happened and NO ONE desires a weakened America or wants The People to be less safe.
I am often called a bleeding heart liberal as if liberal is some sort of dirty word. I was just across the bay on that fateful day, standing with hundreds of fellow Americans watching in horror and disbelief... some were crying, some just silent. However, there was no left or right, we were all simply Americans, we were ALL devestated that day. It the following days, it was not the left or the right that demanded action and it was not left wingers or right wingers that signed up for military duty. We were and STILL are ALL Americans!
Despite YOUR claims, NO ONE has tried to "undermine" any efforts. No particular political affiliations love America more than another and no party wants the destruction of this Nation or favors terrorists. Just because some people have a different opinion on how to protect the Nation does not mean one loves or respects the nation more than another.
Now about that over used and totally meaningless claim that Bush43 kept us safe for 7 1/2 years despite interference from Democrats. The EXACT SAME THING can be said about Clinton! Despite all the right wing crap about the tail wagging the dog, bitching and moaning about Monica and fighting every effort of Clinton's to keep this nation safe... Bill Clinton DID keep this Nation safe for just as long as Bush43 without ANY of the Bush43 tactics or his never ending war on terrorism.
Before you rant on about how the plans for 9/11 were formed on Clinton's watch... AGAIN, EXACTLY like Bush43... the plans for the FIRST attack on the Towers was devised on the preceding POTUS, Bush41's, watch!
Face it, if you try to paint Bush43 as the savior of this Nation, Bill Clinton is standing there with him. Clinton kept this nation safe and there was not a single foreign attack on US soil until 9/11... he even managed to foil a major plot to blow up Washington in the last days of his administration... ALL without Bush43 tactics!
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flygirl
2:15AM May 22nd 2009
I can't believe the comment from Gregory? who said Clinton kept us safe-Are you kidding-the World Trade Center hit, the USS Cole, an Embassy and we did nothing!! No wonder terrorists figured they could fly airplanes into buildings!! What are you thinking?
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alex
4:28AM May 22nd 2009
Do you really think that all of these heroes who take all these steps to keep you safe at night really agree with you? Not necessarily the facts that they do their job in defending the country, but namely your opinion about the Liberal uprising that, in your mind, seems to be taking over; destroying the country's defense system, killing the stock market, and oh, ya, trying the befriend those who we have become so used to calling our enemies. There is no war within this country between red and blue, the only person who makes it difficult for good and decent ideas to flourish, is you; and every other person who seems to think that the word Liberal is the same as traitor, wussy, hippie, f**, etc. Do you really think that those people who jumped off those towers, and burned in PA, all agreed with what you have to say? Do you think that if they could post a comment on this page, they would say, "Ya, I died because of those gosh darn Liberals. Ugh."? Do you think every single soldier in the armed forces that are fighting overseas really think that they belong there? No, you think that to truly be an American means having a right-wing sense of view; when, in reality, you, me, and every other person you know that is not behind those closed doors during the high ranking political meetings, is totally oblivious to what is really happening internationally. Do not, for one second, think that you can cast blame or fault to a political party and not sound like a complete idiot. Go read a book, and perhaps, you may find that being a little more liberal in your life, not necessarily your politics, could do you some good. You might, like, learn to accept other people for who they are and not judge them for what bubble they may have filled in on the ballot.
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cpadmitchell
7:40AM May 22nd 2009
Why should the terrorists attempt another act when GW sent them several young Americans to maim and kill in their back yard? This is more upsetting given the lies Bush used to justift invading Iraq.
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Barbara
1:25PM May 22nd 2009
Chaney seems to forget we got hit on HIS and BUSH watch. They did not stop any attacks. The first and ONLY attach happened because of them, because they refused to listened the FBI and CIA.
Cheney’s speech false to fact and reason
May 21: In a Special Comment, Countdown’s Keith Olbermann marvels at former Vice President Dick Cheney's defense of the Bush administration torture practices while avoiding taking any responsibility for them.
Under President Clinton, there was a terrorist attack on the United States roughly every other year after the first World Trade Center bombing. There was Khobar Towers, Saudi Arabia, the embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, and the USS Cole bombing all coming on the heels of the first World trade Center bombing. Four major terror attacks in eight years. The one attack Clinton gets credit for stopping was the so-called millennium plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport. And even that one was simply a lucky break due to one very observant border crossing guard. Terrorism was so rampant under Clinton, that the 9/11 Commission cited the United States' inability to recognize that radical Islamic extremists were at war with the U.S. as a key contributing factor to the intelligence failures that led to the September 11th attacks.
Clinton was asleep at the wheel!!! we could have had Bin Laden if Clinton was awake! one of the biggest political errors in American history! Clinton was warned by Bush 41 that the terrorists had declared war on the USA and he took a nap! Clinton treated the WTC bombing as a minor distraction who are you kidding!
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j2202208
9:42PM May 21st 2009
Al Gore hasn't shut up... he's flown all over the world on his carbon spewing gulfstream blaming the USA for everything that he considers wrong since the dawn of time. The hypocrite!
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CherMoeLin
10:59PM May 21st 2009
Not as bad as people like you blaming all the crimes and failures of the Bush administration on a president that only recently took office. You people were wishing him failure the week of his inauguration and hoping the economy totally tanked, even if you and your own family had to go down with the ship.
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littlemorehue
12:54AM May 22nd 2009
Cheney has the right to voice his opinion and speak for only himself. He does not have the right to speak on behalf of those who disagree with him. His ideas of what others think are only projections of his own thinking that have nothing to do with anything other than his seeking the limelight again. It is time for him to give up and go home. Wiser people will right his wrongs.
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michael j. williams
1:01AM May 22nd 2009
I would just like to say to Mr. Cheney,,Please Mr. Cheney jusy go away,,,go away,, I am so tried of hearying or reading your hogwash! Thank you in advance for keeping your stupid oppinions to yourself in the future and forevermore,, thank you please!!
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jpgoodrow
1:40AM May 22nd 2009
PICTURE YOUR LOVED ONES being torured to death by terrorists in a foreign country, then beheaded and dragged thru the streets. Now cry me river about waterboarding. IDIOTS.
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park457799
2:21AM May 22nd 2009
I will put my money on Dick Cheney. Cheney has no political aspirations, he is wealthy and ill. He knows by speaking out that the liberals including the media will be critizing him. Then why speak out? Because he loves this country. He has every right to speak out regarding Obama and his administration. What has Obama done since day one? Constantly, it is the fault of the Bush Administration. The sad thing is, Obama looks like a coward. I think many people who voted for him realize what a mistake they made. Who would have thought things would be worse after Obama's inauguration? Well, the are and are probably going to continue going downhill. Obama just does not know what he is doing. My goodness, the man cannot even speak without a teleprompter.