Cheney & Co.: All Quiet on the Counterterror Front?
The hawks are silent on Obama's national security gains.
Fri Oct. 9, 2009 1:00 AM PDT
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama visited the National Counterterrorism Center outside Washington and declared that "because of our efforts" al Qaeda and its allies have "lost operational capacity." He cited recent arrests of terrorist suspects in Colorado, New York, Illinois, and Texas, asserting that these actions have made the nation safer. Afterward, his critics responded with...silence. Since Obama was sworn in, conservative hawks, led by former Vice President Dick Cheney, have been pounding the president for being weak on national security, accusing him of leaving the country vulnerable to another catastrophic attack. But this chorus of scaremongers tends to go mute when the Obama administration scores apparent counterterrorism successes. Cheney, for instance, hasn't said anything publicly about the arrest last month of Najibullah Zazi, the Denver airport shuttle driver, and others accused of planning an al Qaeda bombing operation.
Nor have Cheney and his amen corner acknowledged other gains in the fight against al Qaeda. Instead, it's been a fussillade of potshots. Let's roll the tape.
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On February 3, two weeks after Obama moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Cheney told Politico that there is a "high probability" that terrorists will launch a nuclear or biological strike on the United States and that they would have a better chance of success thanks to Obama's policies. He added, "When we get people who are more concerned about reading the rights to an al Qaeda terrorist than they are with protecting the United States against people who are absolutely committed to do anything they can to kill Americans, then I worry." In mid-March, Cheney said Obama's actions will "raise the risk to the American people of another attack."
On April 1, Abdullah Hamas al Filistini, reputedly a senior al Qaeda trainer, was killed by a CIA Predator drone strike in Pakistan—part of the search-and-bomb program started by President George W. Bush that the Obama administration has continued. Cheney said nothing about this attack. But three weeks later, the ex-veep again slammed Obama. Referring to the president's banning of extreme interrogation techniques (a.k.a. torture), Cheney huffed during an interview with Sean Hannity that the "Obama people" believe that they don't need "tough policies."
In May, Cheney made a similar claim on Face the Nation, asserting that under Obama the nation will not have "safeguards" against terrorists. And at a much-covered speech at the American Enterprise Institute—delivered the same morning Obama was giving a speech on national security and civil liberties—Cheney again charged that the administration was placing the United States at risk by adopting "half-measures" in the fight against Islamic extremists: "There is never a good time to compromise when the lives and safety of the American people are in the balance." That same day, GOP chair Michael Steele accused the Obama administration of endangering the nation by planning to shut down the Guantanamo detention facility. Five days later, Rep. Eric Cantor, the Republican House whip, claimed that the Obama crowd had a "lack of regard for national security."
Such comments have been part of a Republican effort to sow doubts about Obama's commitment to protecting the United States from al Qaeda and other murderous extremists. Yet in the past few months, a number of so-called high-value al Qaeda and Taliban targets have been killed by Obama-ordered Predator strikes in Pakistan. The White House refuses to discuss such assaults, which do result in civilian casualties, and there's no telling the degree to which these attacks truly disrupt al Qaeda's and the Taliban's efforts. Some policy wonks contend that the Predator strikes are counterproductive, for they anger Pakistanis and make it more difficult for the United States to forge a working relationship with a Pakistani government that can be committed to combating al Qaeda and the Taliban. But in the world of counterterrorism, these attacks are regarded as wins. And Cheney, when he was vice president, hailed the Predator as a key weapon in the fight against extremists.
The Long War Journal, a website that chronicles the struggle against al Qaeda and other terrorist movements, tracks the high-value targets killed by CIA drones in Pakistan. Here's its recent list:
* June 23: Khwaz Ali Mehsud, a senior deputy to Baitullah Mehsud, the top leader of the Taliban in Pakistan.
* July 3: Mufti Noor Wali, a suicide bomber trainer for the Taliban and al Qaeda.
* July 7: Kifayatullah Anikhel, a Taliban commander under Baitullah Mehsud.
* August 5: Baitullah Mehsud, the Taliban chief in Pakistan.
* September 7: Mustafa al Jaziri, a senior military commander for al Qaeda.
* September 8: Maulvi Ismail Khan, a military commander in the Haqqani Network, a terrorist group responsible for major attacks in Afghanistan.
* September 14: Najmuddin Jalolov, the leader of the Islamic Jihad Group, a breakaway faction of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. He was allied with al Qaeda.
* September 14: Ilyas Kashmiri, the operations commander of the Harakat-ul-Jihad-Islami, a paramilitary organization active in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India, and the operations chief of Brigade 313, a coalition of several terrorist outfits.
In counterterrorism terms, this is an impressive tally. (And according to the Long War Journal, Predator attacks in Pakistan in 2008 caused 286 al Qaeda and Taliban casualties; this year, through September, the number is 404.) Killing Baitullah Mehsud was particularly significant. As the Wall Street Journal noted, he was "Pakistan's most wanted man, responsible for a spate of suicide bombings in Pakistani cities in recent years." These attacks included the December 2007 assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and last year's bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, which killed 54 people. There was a $5 million bounty on his head for his support of the insurgency in Afghanistan. Moreover, the Journal reported, "the strike on Mr. Mehsud was the first such attack not immediately condemned by Pakistani officials. Pakistan's foreign minister and the head of its Interior Ministry both said the killing was a significant success in the battle against militants." (By contrast, according to US News & World Report, the Bush administration "had refrained from going after Mehsud.")
Also, a US commando raid in Somalia on September 14 reportedly killed Saleh Ali Nabhan, an al Qaeda operative suspected of being part of the operation that bombed the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
According to Nexis and Google searches, Cheney has made no public comment about the killing of any of these militant leaders and operatives. Nor have Cantor, Steele, or any other Republican leader. Nor have Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh. Certainly, it may be difficult for elected officials to discuss explicitly attacks not officially recognized by the White House, but none of these leading conservatives have acknowledged that the Obama administration has been racking up what are considered successes—arrests at home, attacks overseas—in the fight against al Qaeda and its allies. Instead, this pack has repeatedly brayed about Obama's decisions to end waterboarding and to shut down Guantanamo, depicting these policy shifts as essentially acts of surrender in the struggle against Islamic terrorists. To score political points, they purposefully ignore the battlefield reality. When it comes to what's truly happening on the ground, for Cheney and the others, it's all quiet on the counterterrorism front.
Comments
"There is never a good time
Submitted by B1RD67 (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 6:16 AM PDT.
"There is never a good time to compromise when the lives and safety of the American people are in the balance."
Where is that sentiment when we are trying to save the 45,000 Americans who die each year due to a lack of adequate access to health care?
Hey!
Submitted by Get sick, die quickly (not verified) on Tue Oct. 13, 2009 6:55 AM PDT.
I was going to post exactly this when I read the article.
Obama Counterterrorism
Submitted by Steven Paul Mark (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 6:25 AM PDT.
Just for the record, it was Colorado and NYC law enforcement authorities that broke the major cases for which you laud Obama. It remains to be seen whether the President ultimately succeeds but Neptunian lefties worship the water he walks on and always will. It's such a shame in this country that credit can't be giiven when credit's due and withheld when it's not. Independents (and Independence) rule!!
You might want to update
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 6:46 AM PDT.
You might want to update your info ... as the CIA originated this investigation.
Re: Independants and
Submitted by B1RD67 (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 7:08 AM PDT.
Re: Independants and Independance - Everyone must do their part, and personal resonsibility is important however in a Great Society the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts. We are not a great nation because we can go it alone. None of our greatest accomplishments where the result of independant individuals but instead they were the result of a concerted effort by an organized group of people working towards a common goal. Colorafe and NYC law enforecment are not "Lone Rangers". That go it alone attitude whereby each "independant" law enforcemnt and national security group refused to share information to protect "their turf" is the very reason that the FBI and CIA did not prevent the 9-11 attacks. All of the signs were there if they had chosen to work together instead of being "independant".
A coordinated effort
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 8:08 AM PDT.
Actually, it was the work of these two fine organizations in cooperation with the FBI that made this a success. Credit has been given across the board. One of the primary criticisms post 9/11 was the lack of coordination between law enforcement agencies. This operation puts my mind to ease a bit on this front.
It's ok if the federal government does something good while under President Obama. This fact does not need to invalidate your world view. Just say 'thanks' and move on.
And who coordinated these
Submitted by Sundiszno (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 11:16 AM PDT.
And who coordinated these law enforcement agencies? Just a coincidence?
credit for the terrorist arrests
Submitted by NancyP on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 9:51 AM PDT.
I get that you don't like Obama and I get that you think that Bush did an exemplary job but ask yourself this: would Bush have claimed the terrorist arrests in Colorado as proof that his policies work? Your damn right he would have. The fact that these arrests took place at all shows that Obama did not dismantle the safeguards against terrorism in this country that Cheney et. al. claimed he would and did do. If he had done so and there was a terrorist attack you would have blamed Obama for failing to do his job. Credit were credit is due.
Chickenhawks
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 6:32 AM PDT.
I'm surprised. Did you expect anything different from these partisan chickenhawks?
Investigate Cheney
Submitted by Arvid (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 7:44 AM PDT.
As much as Obama may want to call the torture and waterboarding issues a distraction and want to move on. the country needs to investigate --- who did what, and when.
Recall that a generation ago, what the Republicans tried to dismiss as a third rate burglary in a posh Washington hotel suite had much more depth, that led all the way to Erhlichmann, Haldeman, and beyond.
I find it unlikely that the soldiers engaged in the acts of torture were freelancing. If the Justice Department is unwilling to investigate the roles of Cheney, Gonzalez, Yoo, et al, then we must turn once again to the Washington Post.
SMART PRESIDENT
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 10:49 AM PDT.
investigating a previous president is not the next president's job. it is the member of congress that are supposed to have oversight duties. congress must open an investigation then appoint an independent investigator to follow the evidence (any thing the investigator like) just like when they impeached PRESIDENT CLINTON over an affair.
the first 6 years under the BUSH white house; congress performed no oversight and the white house did what ever they like. the last two years under a democratic congress, the democratic decided to seek additional seats in congress for the presidential elections and did not want to use their politico capital on an investigation that would last longer then the election cycle.
if i was OBAMA, i would not investigated the last white either. just change their policies (as he is doing and keep moving). let congress stop playing politics and start doing their jobs with oversight. AND QUIT TRYING TO SCORE POINTS ON EVERY SUBJECT. no one cares except during and election.
Daughter Liz is nowwhere to be seen either
Submitted by BR (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 8:41 AM PDT.
I notice we haven't seen Chickenhawk Cheney Jr. ( i.e. Liz) on the talking head shows recently either. I guess she only rears her ugly head when pols raise the specter of a Cheney indictment for his criminal activities and war profiteering. Feels the need to defend papa. All of this fear mongering is a smoke screen anyway -- it has nothing to do with our security and everything to do with keeping Cheney out of jail.
To Steven Paul Mark (wow, three first names and all saints as well, how about that): you just illustrate the point that counterterrorism is a law enforcement effort, not a WAR, like the necons want to keep it to continuing reaping profits for the military-industrial complex.
Liz Cheney real person
Submitted by Gwazdos on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 2:39 AM PDT.
Liz Cheny is really Tanya Harding, that is why she looks and speak like she is lost in a forest of stupidity.
Liz was busy...
Submitted by Devon J. Noll, MPA (not verified) on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 6:23 AM PDT.
It was announced yesterday that Liz Cheney, along with a couple of other neocons, have set up a new political non-profit to expose how America is being made less safe by the Obama Administration politicies. It is called Keep America Safe and it is going to keep America updated on military deployments, military commander's views, and other issues that they feel America needs to understand so that they can see how unsafe we are without her Daddy's wise counsel and leadership! Horsepuckey!
It is apparent from this article that we have had considerably more success in accomplishing the only mission we Americans ever supported - getting Al Qaida and bringing Bin Laden to justice for 9/11 under the Obama Administration than we ever did under her hateful father and his bloodthirsty supporters. The efforts of this president to undo the damage that her father did to this nation by opening up lines of communications with the Muslim world and Obama's taking the time to understand what he is doing rather than just rushing to war have eased many political tensions around the world. Liz would do well to take a few lessons from the book of diplomacy and peaceful co-existence, then from the Art of War as preached by her father. Keep an eye on this girl, she will prove to dangerous in the future because she is Daddy's favored child and such children have a tendency to be more evil than their parent.
Chickenhawk Cheney
Submitted by Pedro (not verified) on Fri Jan. 1, 2010 7:01 PM PST.
For a fair and balanced review they should also do an in depth study as to how the secretive Cheney/Bush lies kept america safer with special emphasisi over the pre - 9/11 period. Both these guys were draft dodging i.e CHICKENHAWKS.
our terrorist leader
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 8:49 AM PDT.
for Cheney, and his supporters big and small, the thrill of breaking the law and getting away with it is really what is at stake here - or rather the fear of losing it. They guard the idea of American exceptionalism as a legitimate right to bully anyone, anytime. It is a very powerful psychic urge. In America there are an awful lot of people who are marginalized but who fantasize about ultimately exerting their power over others. Cheney is their leader. The Ultra Right wing, now the Republican party, is their refuge. Xenophobia (fear of others), racism, fascism, etc., all stem from the common root. Cheney is the ultimate domestic terrorist leader - the equal and opposite of bin Laden in every way.
Has he made another one of his tapes? Has he recorded another video, in which he blows the dog whistle, speaking in code to a wide-spread, isolated, but ideologically uniform network of violent, well armed, disciplined, but psychologically unstable individuals and cells? He will, he will.
obama counterterrorism
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 9:04 AM PDT.
The reason for these successes was because of the ground work and policies implemented by the Bush administration since 9/11. Give credit where credit is due - If Bush were still in office that list you posted would have no doubt been titled "Unlawful Murders by US military in Pakistan". Cheney doesn't have to say anything, because he was right, and Obama knows this is - that is why he hasn't bothered to change any of the Bush policies as he had threatened to, becasue they are work as the country just witnessed by these arrests.
All this proves is once again the media, and this administration will continue to spin and take credit for success they had no role in implementing. Many Democrats cried foul against the very policies that brought these terrorists(can I call them that?) plots down. Maybe if Obama could stop himself from all the blame Bush rhetoric and stop working so hard to look a bystander in Washington, sort of above it all- giving him credit might be a bit more easy to swallow. As it is, the agencies he has vilified over the past few months deserve all the recognition. He should give it to them and move on.
DICK CHENEY AND HIS SILENCE
Submitted by globalman2 (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 10:21 AM PDT.
Mr. Cheney obviously has not read the reports on how "hostile" interrogation methods result in much less information being secured. I am all for interrogation to secure information....it just goes with the territory. But Mr. Cheney is way out in outer space and is only interested in Unilateralism and unfortunately being of one focus has put the USA in an unfavorable position in the world. We are a great nation, but we have lost much prestige in the world. Our economy is in shambles thanks to many years of horrid management. All we were worried about in the 8 years of "W"-Cheney & Rumsfeld was war, espionage, taking over oil as in our invastion of Iraq. Instead of spending the TRILLIONS we have spent in Iraq to fix thier infrastructure....we should have spent it here. But that was typical Cheney adn others. NOW Cheney is no where to be seen as the Obama administration is keeping a focus on terror while improving how the world perceives the USA. So Dear Mr. Cheney.....GROW UP you litte baby!
Perception
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 8:40 AM PDT.
"NOW Cheney is no where to be seen as the Obama administration is keeping a focus on terror while improving how the world perceives the USA."
Perception doesn't matter. When Jimmy Carter was in office, (which, by the way people are comparing Obama to him now), the US Embassy in Iran was taken over by militants and lots of hostages were taken in the 1970s and we did nothing about it.
When Bill Clinton was in office, another US Embassy was bombed in Africa, along with the bombing of the USS Cole. When Bush was in office, 9/11 happened, and you know what? That's not the first time attempts were made on the twin towers either.
The point is, people like yourself are so concerned with "how the world perceives the US." To terrorists, the perception will NEVER change. Terrorism has happened against the US under EVERY SINGLE ADMINISTRATION, be they Democrat or Republican, for over 40 years!!!
Al Qaeda's #2 leader is constantly slamming Obama, and yep, you guessed it, even comparing him to George W. Bush! Just read this article to see for yourself. http://news.iafrica.com/specialreport/uselections/news/1844560.htm.
People somehow think, that if we're nice, polite, and reach out to terrorists, they won't want to kill us. You know what, that strategy has been used, and they've still been wanting to harm us and HAVE been harming us under EVERY Presidential Administration since the 1970s... Carter tried the whole "let's be nice to everyone strategy." So did Clinton. Terrorism STILL happens!!!
First a little history lesson...
Submitted by Devon J. Noll, MPA (not verified) on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 6:46 AM PDT.
I am sure the families of the soldiers who died in the failed attempt to rescue those diplomats in Iran just loved your comment about how no attempt was made to rescue the captives. That attempt was poorly planned and conceived by a US military, not a President who authorized it. President Carter was not in the middle of a war when this happened, he was in the middle of a political campaign with the man who eventually was linked to Iran-Contra drug and guns policy. He lost because he was not in bed with the Iranians, as was his opponent.
As for the USS Cole, you are right that along with the first attack on the Twin Towers happened on other watches. In part because of poorly coordinated intelligence work that left us vulnerable to attack. Did anything happen to change that structure? No. Why? The military and the Republican Congress did not think it was necessary to change how we handle intelligence assessments.
Now we come to the big one - 9/11. When the Clinton Administration left office, during the transition phase, they tried to repeatedly warn Bush and company of the assessment that Al Qaida was planning a large-scale terrorist attack in the US. Bush and Cheney felt that the previous administration was overreacting. This is all noted in the 9/11 Commission investigation. Continuing intelligence from the FBI field offices, as well as CIA operatives overseas, all pointed to the imminence of the attack. But nothing was done to stop it because no one in the Administration was interested in what a friend of the Bush family's son was doing. So, 3000+ people died on the Republican watch.
Do Muslim terrorists still hate us? Of course they do; in their fanatical approach to politics, they will never change.
Should we spend the rest of our lives being afraid of them? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I, for one, am not going to spend my life worrying about the next 9/11, that is both fruitless and cowardly.
Do I trust that the government of this nation will prevent another attack? I hope they will, but as long as people are fanatics we will always be at risk.
Do I think we are at greater risk from domestic terrorism in this country? ABSOLUTELY! Unless the fanatics on our side of this issue stop ratcheting up the hate speech and encouraging violence, our nation stands a greater chance of being attacked from nationalist fanatics that are homegrown, than we do from Al Qaida.
You are right when you say terrorism will happen, but what are you doing to stop giving terrorists cause to attack us? For most of us, we are doing nothing because we are not showing our support in vast numbers for diplomacy over war; good policy over violent reactionary policy; wise and effective use of intelligence instead of lies and selective intelligence to generate specific outcomes. It is time for something other than war as a solution to terrorism, because the next time it is war, it will be within our own borders started not by Al Qaida, but by hate speech and lies. So, the lesson in history is this: all facts are important, but full disclosure if even more important.
Skin in the game
Submitted by A Fitzgerald Breland (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 11:49 AM PDT.
Well its about time I begin my life into real politics. I have sat around long enough. Simply put, R. Limbaugh and all of the pundits who seem to dislike everything Obama and his administration are focused on, are simply haters of America and a different president. Different in a number of ways: Skin color, belief systems, upbringing, policy, etc. We have to just send the old bulls to pasture. All they have left are their vile mouths of hate speech and loathing of the president. I feel sorry for that community of haters because they see the forrest for the trees and it simply shows them that the cream is truly rising to the top. And they see that they are not included. "Give me my country back!"~Its too late, its gone!
Irony
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 12:39 AM PDT.
"All they have left are their vile mouths of hate speech and loathing of the president." Wow, that sounds a lot like what Bush had to deal with from liberals every day for the past 8 years.
Then again...
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 4:46 AM PDT.
"All they have left are their vile mouths of hate speech and loathing of the president." Wow, that sounds a lot like what Bush had to deal with from liberals every day for the past 8 years."
...Obama hasn't started a war with "manufactured" intelligence, resulting in the deaths of over 4000 Americans. Additionally, he considers waterboarding to be a form of torture, and not, euphemistically speaking, enhanced interrogation.
George Bush deserves any loathing he receives. But give Obama time. Maybe he'll do something to deserve condemnation from conservatives. Well, besides being intelligent, black, and a Nobel laureate.
Why Cheney is really silent
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 11:54 AM PDT.
Because, his daughter, the only lesbian to be allowed to be married and a parent in America, is preggers again.
Dumping on Obama
Submitted by tombstonecowboy on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 12:20 PM PDT.
Buddy
If it isn't the birthers, the Cheney crowd, Beck, Limbaugh or some other lunatic, it's never going to end because they would have him prove that he's not from Venus, Mars or the dark side of the moon.
These "knuckle draggers" just cannot get their heads around the fact that there is a 'black family' in the Whitehouse.
Face it Cheney, your fantasy of an alabaster, lily white America is long gone, if it ever existed at all. Face it Cheney, America is a de-facto multi cultural and multilingual society.
Maybe instead of neverending attacks on Obama, you should take a Spanish class.
Happy hunting Mr. Vice President, if you can find someone to go with.
Oh! The Irony!
Submitted by Realist@blogcritics.org (not verified) on Fri Oct. 9, 2009 3:55 PM PDT.
Here we are discussing Obama's warrior creds on the same day that the Nobel Committee awards him the Peace Prize!
Personally, I think that the targeting of leaders is a better approach than killing masses of followers with poorly planned strikes based on rumors and red herrings, and maybe this is why the Committee chose to bestow the award on Obama.
cheney & co
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat Oct. 10, 2009 2:08 AM PDT.
Is there anyone left in the country who cares what cheney thinks or says? It is time for him to go back to Wyoming and wait for his end.
Breathing hate.
Submitted by Aliraqiyah (not verified) on Sat Oct. 10, 2009 1:42 PM PDT.
We all know he has breathing problem. His cardiologist probably have told him the amount of hate he generates when he speaks in public will explodes his heart. the sane Americans despise his voice.
Hypocrite
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 12:37 AM PDT.
I love how when Bush was in office and he was going after Al Qaeda liberals ripped him 24/7/365 and now that Obama is in office, it's suddenly a good thing. This is repulsive. I guess protecting your country as Commander in Chief is only a good thing if a Democrat is in office right?
Get your facts straight!
Submitted by Devon J. Noll, MPA (not verified) on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 7:09 AM PDT.
First, liberals did not attack Bush and Cheney 24/7/365 for going after Bin Laden and Al Qaida. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, in this nation understood the mission in Afghanistan and its importance, except possibly Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld! Liberals did not go after him for that - they went after when he decided to unilaterally invade Iraq, a nation that was not involved in 9/11, based on manufactured intelligence and a lust for oil and money.
Second, Bush and Cheney have been proven to have made this country less safe because of their failure to stop Al Qaida and attacking an innocent nation. They have angered a whole generation of Iraqis and other Muslims around the world and counterterrorism analysts all state that the rise we have seen in fanatical Muslim recruitment and training is the direct result of Bush policies.
Do liberals like the increased presence in Afghanistan - NO. Are they letting the President know - ABSOLUTELY. Do they want us our of Iraq faster - YES. Are they letting the President know -ABSOLUTELY!
The American public is working to get the President to stop these wars, but it is not attacking him for going after Al Qaida, anymore that it attacked Bush. They are going after him for not getting out of Iraq more quickly, not shutting down Gitmo more quickly, and if you want to slam someone, why not try the Republicans in Congress, the military, and on talk radio who are urging this President to escalate in Afghanistan using a military strategy that failed in Vietnam and is going to fail in Afghanistan because it failed for every nation that has ever used in there. The President is looking for a different approach and I hope he eventually starts by getting the likes of Petraeus and Gates and McKrsytal out of the decision making process and puts in a good commander with a strong understanding of military strategic history (and I am talking early guerrilla tactics).
No war is good and no president who follows such a diplomatic strategy is good for nation, but President Obama inherited these wars, and he is doing his best to try to end them. He has been in office 10 months and he has made more headway towards resolving them and developing an exit strategy than Bush or Cheney or Rumsfeld or Gates has in 8 years!
How afraid of a terrorist should a Patriot be?
Submitted by Bwian (not verified) on Mon Oct. 26, 2009 7:18 AM PDT.
Devon gets all the context right here. But for the underlying meme - The Terrorists Will Strike Again - what is the correct response for a true American Patriot to take?
1. Cower in fear of unknown evil, hateful forces. Petition government to make the "safety" of the people the most important role of government.
2. Be a real American. You know, Land of the Free, Home of the Brave. Dare any terrorist to come try to kill you or your family. Then kill them first, or die for your Country.
In either case, quit whining about how Bush was sternly "talked about" in the press or whatever. The guy never missed a meal or a good nights sleep the whole time. And he retires on Government benefits.
My stance - I will do what I like, live how I like, in freedom. If a terrorist manages to kill me - fuck 'em. Maybe we will meet in hell where I get another shot at the bastards.
This is how "Liberals" approach life in general. Conservatives seem to enjoy the sad life of option 1.
counterterrorism
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 6:12 AM PDT.
They are using these success reports as dustcovers for that unread national intelligence report warning that Bin Laden was trying to attack the US with hijacked commercial airplanes.
Former President Cheney-
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 11:42 AM PDT.
He deserves hanging for outing a CIA Agent, and, other monstrous crimes against America!!
Cheney would love nothing
Submitted by N Alderman (not verified) on Mon Oct. 12, 2009 8:01 PM PDT.
Cheney would love nothing more than a terrorist attack right now. His lips would crack into a reptilian smile if he saw images of wounded and dying Americans on Fox News. This is apparently what he did on 9-11, which in an interview he described the attacks as the high point of the Bush years. The interviewer added that it was the lowest point too, but Cheney didn't seem to get that the interviewer was trying to soften the fact Cheney viewed 9-11 as a feeding frenzy for destroying civil liberties and providing billions of dollars for his business buddies. He gains profit when Americans die, whether in war, terrorist attacks, or natural disasters.
ddd
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue Oct. 13, 2009 1:39 PM PDT.
Rich Ironies
Submitted by avannavon on Wed Oct. 14, 2009 10:42 AM PDT.
Imagine this--- someone who rants about "global warming" in the face of eleven years of steady temperature declines accuses ANYONE of fear-mongering?
Imagine this-- someone who HATES Dick Cheney and G.W. Bush with self-righteous passion, nonetheless extols the virtues of Barack Obama when he extends the hated Patriot Act and keeps all its creepy executive powers for himself?
Imagine this-- someone who criticized Bush unrelentingly for involving us in Iraq and Afghanistan stays strangely silent when Obama covertly increases troop strength by 30,000 men on top of the 28,000 he already added to the armed forces budget since he took office? Not one word about getting us in deeper?
Imagine this --- someone as Left, Left, Left as David asks---how can they pass a health care reform bill before it's written? Much less read?
Of all the bizarre Liberal behavior I have witnessed this year, up to and including the "everything is racist" plague that swept the country for a couple months, passing a trillion dollar health care reform bill BEFORE it's written and BEFORE it's read, strikes me at the tip-top of the inverted logic pyramid.
Chenney, BushCo's Chief Shadow Executive...
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu Oct. 15, 2009 6:13 PM PDT.
Dick was suppose to make it work like Panama when Daddy wanted to masturbate
the Empire on his old boy Noriega. But, it was all in the family, the bin ladens, and the shrubs can't let their machines kill their own family & mob crusaders. The real
objective was probably to kill Bhutto, and get Saddam for trying to frag Daddy back
in '92. Now the N.W.O. has to figure out how we're going to use F-22's & F-35's to
'spread more counterterrorism' so Mr. + Mrs. Chenney can retire comfortably selling the U.S. middle class short on their dime.
USA just had a terrorist
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu Nov. 5, 2009 4:08 PM PST.
USA just had a terrorist attack, at FT Hood after 8 years of being safe, Thanks to Obama
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