Cheney endorses effort to repeal DADT: ?It strikes me that it?s time to reconsider the policy.?
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on February 15th, 2010 5:36 am by HL
Cheney endorses effort to repeal DADT: ?It strikes me that it?s time to reconsider the policy.?
On ABC’s This Week today, former Vice President Cheney threw his support behind President Obama’s efforts to change the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, saying that “things have changed significantly” since the discriminatory policy was first put in place. Cheney said that it’s “time to reconsider the policy”: KARL: And you think that’s a good […]
On ABC’s This Week today, former Vice President Cheney threw his support behind President Obama’s efforts to change the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, saying that “things have changed significantly” since the discriminatory policy was first put in place. Cheney said that it’s “time to reconsider the policy”:
KARL: And you think that’s a good thing? I mean, is it time to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military?
CHENEY: Well, I think the society has moved on. I think it’s partly a generational question. I say I’m reluctant to second-guess the military in this regard because they’re the ones who have got to make the judgment about how these policies affect the military capability of our, of our units. And that first requirement that you have to look at all the time is whether they’re still capable of achieving their mission and does the policy change i.e. putting gays in the force, affect their ability to perform their mission. When the chiefs come forward and say we think we can do it, then it strikes me that it’s time to reconsider the policy. And I think Admiral Mullen’s said that.
Watch it:
Cheney’s argument that Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen’s statement that repealing the policy is “the right thing to do” because it is an expression from the military leadership that they “can do it” puts him in stark contrast with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). After Mullen announced his personal support for repeal, McCain insisted that the opinion of the top uniformed officer in the military’s doesn’t represent “the views of military leaders.” Additionally, Cheney’s endorsement of the policy change isn’t entirely surprising. After the Bush administration left office, Cheney revealed that he supported same-sex marriage on the state level.
Despite Opposing Withdrawal From Iraq, Cheney Takes Credit For Withdrawal Success
Vice President Biden, appearing on Larry King earlier this week, stated, “I am very optimistic about Iraq. I think it’s going to be one of the great achievements of this administration.” This statement has been widely distorted, with claims from conservatives that the Obama administration is trying to take credit for the surge. Biden’s comments […]
Vice President Biden, appearing on Larry King earlier this week, stated, “I am very optimistic about Iraq. I think it’s going to be one of the great achievements of this administration.” This statement has been widely distorted, with claims from conservatives that the Obama administration is trying to take credit for the surge.
Biden’s comments do no such thing; instead they note that the withdrawal of American troops — something that conservatives for years have said would be a disaster — has gone very well. In February, President Obama announced a timetable for withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq — an issue that he campaigned on and was vigorously opposed by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who advocated keeping U.S. troops in Iraq indefinitely. Biden was pointing out that conservatives were wrong that withdrawal would, as Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol argued, “likely lead to carnage on a scale that would dwarf what is now occurring in Iraq.”
On ABC’s This Week today, former Vice President Cheney further distorted Biden’s comments and took credit for a withdrawal plan he opposed, saying that Biden should be “thanking George Bush.” Biden, however, pushed back against Cheney’s distortions on Meet the Press and Face the Nation, maintaining that the Iraq war “wasn’t worth it.” Biden argued that the Obama administration has managed the drawdown “very very well,” noting that the administration has acted as a “catalyst” for political reconciliation, which was the source of violence and the primary obstacle to a successful withdrawal. He also pointed out that in January 2009, the Bush administration had no political plan for Iraq. Watch Cheney and Biden:
Cheney’s attempt to take credit for the withdrawal represents a total turnaround. Just last summer, Cheney worried that Iraq withdrawal will “waste all the tremendous sacrifice” of US troops. Cheney has long fear-mongered on the implication of U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. During the 2008 campaign, he even called the demands from Democrats in Congress for a timetable for withdrawal an act of “betrayal.”
