SUN EDITORIAL:

The height of arrogance

Dick Cheney helped create the mess in Afghanistan but criticizes Obama

Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009 | 2:05 a.m.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney had the gall last week to say President Barack Obama is “dithering” on the question of whether to send more troops to Afghanistan.

The remark was in reference to the bleak assessment submitted Aug. 30 to the White House by U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander in Afghanistan.

McChrystal wrote that enemy forces and government corruption are growing so rapidly that unless a sizable infusion of U.S. troops is ordered within a year, the war “will likely result in failure.”

In the short time since he received the assessment, President Obama has been weighing the general’s call for expanding the war against many other options. His decision calls for thorough consideration because another expansion (Obama earlier sent more than 20,000 additional troops) could involve the United States in Afghanistan for decades.

But Cheney is trying to paint the president as derelict. “Signals of indecision out of Washington hurt our allies and embolden our adversaries,” Cheney said. “Waffling, while our troops on the ground face an emboldened enemy, endangers them and hurts our cause.”

No one should be taken in by Cheney’s attempt to whitewash the years he and former President George W. Bush were responsible for the Afghanistan war.

Under them, far too few forces were sent to Afghanistan and they were never properly equipped or reinforced, despite pleadings by commanders on the ground. This gave Taliban and al-Qaida forces the opportunity to grow strong again inside Afghanistan.

The impulsive Bush-Cheney decision to invade Iraq was the real blow. The priority was made clear by Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said while serving in the same capacity under Bush-Cheney: “In Afghanistan we do what we can, in Iraq we do what we must.”

It was the Bush/Cheney nonmanagement of the war that led to McChrystal’s blunt assessment that our efforts in Afghanistan could soon fail. Yet Cheney is criticizing Obama for taking time to think about the mess he inherited? How fortunate we are that Cheney and his ilk are out of office.

Discussion: 10 comments so far…

By dwms

10/25/09 at 3:25 a.m.

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Didn't these wars start because of "Weapons of Mass Destruction" which never existed?
By Future

10/25/09 at 3:50 a.m.

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"In the short time since he received the assessment, President Obama has been weighing the general's call..." 3 months!!!!

The LV Sun has forgotten that Afghanistan has been Obama's "good" war since 2002 - and his responsibility since January.

Obama on 10-6-09 said that Al-Qaida has "lost operational capacity"

Biden is saying conditions have changed since March.

What is not clear is why Obama is laying the blame on "failure" in Afghanistan on the Afghanistan central government.

Afghanistan never signed up for duty.

There was no strong central government in Afghanistan when the USA went in to rout the Taliban, which harbored the Al-Qaida.

Afghanistan still does not want a strong central government.

Now Obama is demanding that Afghanistan develop an "adequate" government, an army, and a police force. Why should Afghanistan?

Obama has to re-chose one of three Afghanistan strategic paths

1. Counterinsurgency -The path Obama took during and after the election to surge the good war, and take the fight to the enemy "with troops on the ground" to take them down. A counterinsurgency strategy of clearing, holding, and rebuilding so we could disrupt, dismantle, and defeat the Al Qaeda. We would protect the local people.

This is the strategy Bush give Obama last fall.

2. Counterterrorism -Go back to the Bush Afghanistan approach of a "spooks and drone containment war" to interdict and disrupt the enemy activities. We would abandon the local people.

3. Quit - the fight and when the next event occurs treat it as a police action.
By Future

10/25/09 at 3:58 a.m.

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The Washington Post is reporting about Obama's enemies list:

Obama has authorized a U.S. military "shoot-to-kill" hit list of about 50 suspected drug kingpins which is drawing fierce opposition from Afghan officials, who say it could undermine their fragile justice system and trigger a backlash against foreign troops.

Obama has authorized the U.S. military and NATO officials have authorized their forces to kill or capture individuals on the list.

Afghan counternarcotics officials expressed frustration that U.S. and NATO military leaders have refused to divulge the names on the list, a decision that they said could undercut joint operations to hunt down opium traffickers. Ali Ahmad Jalali, a former Afghan interior minister, said "There is a constitutional problem here. A person is innocent unless proven guilty," he said. "If you go off to kill or capture them, how do you prove that they are really guilty in terms of legal process?"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...

Where does this fit in the VP Joe Biden/ General Jimmy Jone War council decision
By fremmasmind

10/25/09 at 5:20 a.m.

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Now that Cheney is back on paper in control of Haliburton he definately wants more troops over there to protect the construction of the two pipelines that have been put on hold for 15 years in Afghanistan. He didn't want to escalate the occupations when he was VP because the longer the occupations took the more money the corporates would make. It saddens me that we have lost our soldiers for corporate greed.
By Sunlizard

10/25/09 at 7:32 a.m.

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As creepy as Dick Cheney was/is, he is old news. Obama is now the man with the blood on his hands now. Why is he so agressive? And why does the Sun schill for one political party? How about an objective view for a change?

Mr. Obama seems to be suffering from the same tough guy syndrome as Bush. Not once has Obama talked about pulling out of Afganistan, yet he ran his campaign of lies on a peace soapbox. Obama is putting more and more money, human lives and arrogance into a military industrial complex and the Sun does not have the guts to call him on it. Time to go to the other sources for some real news, but I once again enjoyed the Sun stroking the democrats!
By fremmasmind

10/25/09 at 7:58 a.m.

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sunlizard, this was one of the ways Obama got votes, by lying to the public that he would end the occupations in the mideast. Now that he's Prez. he's got people over him to answer to.
By LarryVegas

10/25/09 at 10:16 a.m.

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It's also saddens me that we have lost our soldiers for political greed by the Obama Administration.
By lcdrmandingonamvet

10/25/09 at 6:27 p.m.

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Future, did ya take your meds today? I served in 3 deployments to Vietnam. 55% of the soldier-draftees killed in Vietnam were Black like me, and we only comprised 12% of the nation's entire populatiuon. Back to Vietnam. 58K American saints were killed in Vietnam. Many were "G-A-Y" too. During a 5 year period, 25K of the 58K total were killled, while the GOP was devisign their Vietnam exit strategy.

BTW, Cal Thomas recently stated he is against GAYS serving in our military units. HYPOCRITE! He didn't publicly state his opposition while GAYS were serving in his place in Vietnam. Thomas is a your classic GOP coward and "commie-sider". GOP commie-siders don't love America. That includes Bishops Mitt-Orrin, Boy George, Dobbs (birther), Shelby, Rush Lim"P"baugh, O'Reilly (phone sex offender), Imus, Sessions, Grassley, Lott, Cheney, Boehner, McConnell, Frist, Kristol, Thomas, Delay, Cornyn, Coburn (Ensign's felonious buddy), etc.
By larry5

10/25/09 at 7:07 p.m.

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"It was the Bush/Cheney nonmanagement of the war that led to McChrystal's blunt assessment that our efforts in Afghanistan could soon fail. Yet Cheney is criticizing Obama for taking time to think about the mess he inherited?"

I think most Americans are getting quite tired of the "It's Bush's fault, don't blame Obama for what he inherited" crap.

He needn't take responsibility after nine months - how about after two years? Or three years? Maybe never. You Obama apologists should start to realize that you elected Barack Hussein Bush. More of the same but the difference is he's a radical with no executive experience. Obama says he needs time to make these decisions, but the reality is that he's still voting "present." Face it - the guy is in way over his head.
By wolf85023

10/25/09 at 8:03 p.m.

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Bush\Cheney inherited the tech. bubble and 9/11.
Obama\Biden inherited the depression.
If Obama did not want to inherit these problem he should not have run for president.
I felt more safe with Bush in office.
There is no one to blame but ourselves we are the voters.