Here we are now. Four months removed from Obama's inauguration speech. One month away from the CIA memo release and leading democrats fumbling of what they knew vs. what they said. Now comes Cheney, who started this campaign against democrats who believe they know best how to keep America safe, by pointing out that if Obama believes in transparency as his campaign and inauguration speech stated then release all the memo's about what was done, who knew what, when they knew it and what information was gleened from EIT's. However, Obama trying to CYA for Pelosi, himself and the rest of the liberal dems, only releases selected portions of the memo's only which serves to cause America harm, not good.
So, as vilified as Cheney is you have to now ask yourself on this debate...who do you trust more? Obama or Cheney? Cheney knows that actually protecting a country and its citizens happens by doing. Obama only knew by 'saying' since he stated numerous times on the campaign trail that he would end EIT, close Gitmo, and bring the troops in Iraq home by March 2009. Leadership is defined by action not words. All Obama has really done up to this point is words since he flip-flopped on bringing the troops home by the time he said he would, flip-flopped on closing Gitmo when he said he would, and flip-flopped on releasing the torture photos that the ACLU and a liberal court ruled to release. It's on this last point where Obama has actually shown leadership toward protecting America and not putting our soldiers at risk. It's on all the other points that he wrecklessly endangers all of our safety.
As Cheney delivered knock out punch after knock out punch to the raised chin of Obama here is what I gleaned from the two speeches. The moral of the past 8 years on the issue with which Obama and Cheney spoke is that it is Right to enact Article II of the Constitution and save American lives and it is Wrong to not administer harsh (but not illegal) techniques in which those lives can be saved. The Value that Cheney quite clearly holds high above what Obama can reach is that American lives are to be held sacred to the President and government that they swear on the Constitution (see Article II again) to up hold. And also keep in mind that while Obama lectures (for the far left and his media minions) that EIT's are banned under his administration he does keep it open as an option in times of emergency. "This might explain why President Obama has reserved unto himself the right to order the use of enhanced interrogation should he deem it appropriate. What value remains to that authority is debatable, given that the enemy now knows exactly what interrogation methods to train against, and which ones not to worry about. Yet having reserved for himself the authority to order enhanced interrogation after an emergency, you would think that President Obama would be less disdainful of what his predecessor authorized after 9/11. It’s almost gone unnoticed that the president has retained the power to order the same methods in the same circumstances."
Cheney in his speech said, "In seeking to guard this nation against the threat of catastrophic violence, our Administration gave intelligence officers the tools and lawful authority they needed to gain vital information. We didn’t invent that authority. It is drawn from Article Two of the Constitution. And it was given specificity by the Congress after 9/11, in a Joint Resolution authorizing “all necessary and appropriate force” to protect the American people.
Obama gave a 60 minute (yes 60 minute diatribe) that literally left you wondering where does he stand. He, like he so famously can do, took all sides of the argument that left you, like his Harvard professor once said, feeling like he appealed to your side of the argument no matter what side you were on. This is not leadership but rather a stance of riding both ways so that no matter which way it goes he wins. When will America wake up and see that this person we have to stand and applaud as he approaches the podium is a far cry from a real leader who, no matter how unpopular it is, will make a tough, hard decision that will better the country? 2012 can't come quick enough.
