“I think all the perspective candidates out there have a lot of work to do if they’re going to persuade the majority of Americans that they’re ready to take on the world’s toughest job.” – Dick Cheney, former vice president on “This Week” (see video below)
That’s the Republicans’ biggest challenge, but especially for Sarah Palin, which Mr. Cheney made very clear today on “This Week.”
The 2012 election season is starting early, with Obama’s pitbull taking on the Republican Party’s pitbull in a Sunday morning talk-off that wasn’t exactly a Valentine. Cheney obviously believing that national security is a place where the Democrats are vulnerable, because he still hasn’t grasped that the warnings missed before 9/11 lay in the Bush-Cheney administration’s lap.
However, Mr. Cheney was even more on point about his own party’s problems, taking on the current megastar straight on during a Q&A with ABC’s Jonathan Karl.
Charisma and draw alone will never translate into a serious foreign policy thinker, though we all should accept that if the economy and jobs deficit don’t turn around, Obama’s up against it no matter who the Republicans choose. However, in the interview today, Dick Cheney clearly sent a message and a warning to Mrs. Palin on her perpetual need to make grave foreign policy matters a political football.
Asked to weigh in on Sarah Palin’s comments about Iran recently in her interview on Fox News Sunday, former vice president Dick Cheney commented clearly and bluntly by punching Palin’s purely political tactics towards foreign policy as being too simplistic. Palin talking about bombing Iran as a good political move for Pres. Obama, basically channeling Daniel Pipes and the neoconservatives.
“I don’t think a president can make a judgment like that on the basis of politics. The stakes are too high. The consequences too significant to be treating those as simple political calculations. …even begin to talk about war you talk about crossing international borders, you talk about committing American men and women to combat. That takes place on a plain clear above any political consideration. I’d be very cautious about treating that kind of issue on those kinds of conditions.” – Dick Chency, former vice president
This is rich considering how the Republicans got the AUMF passed Congress, by not putting it up in August of 2002, because after all, you never do marketing campaigns in the summer. Then hoisting it right before an election to squeeze Democrats. I guess it all depends on what your definition of politics is, right Mr. Cheney? Of course, if Democrats hadn’t caved to this craven political maneuver, a list of notables that included every single presidential wannabe in the Senate at the time, they wouldn’t prove such predictable marks for neoconservatives.
As for Mr. Cheney’s clear warning shot over Sarah’s bow, what Palin’s people, including Randy Scheuneman who is reportedly advising her on foreign policy, need to do is actually surprise people through new Palin talking points that show her utilizing some sort of deliberation on matters of war and peace. Not that this would be enough to catapult over her electability qualification hurdles, if she doesn’t also reveal she understands that foreign policy isn’t simply a game of Risk.
The Republican Party godfather, Dick Cheney, likely to be the most coveted endorsement going forward, as none of the candidates so far dreaming about the GOP nomination in 2012 are exactly foreign policy wunderkinds.
This post has been updated.
Dick Cheney represents the neocons dark vision of the world. Simply put that vision says “if you’re not with us, you’re against us.” In essence what these warmongers are saying is that unless you tow ‘our’ line we will consider you an “enemy combatant” and as far as we’re concerned “you will have no rights.” That means that we can torture you, your family and your friends. We can summarily execute you, your family and your friends or we can capture you. If we capture you we can hold you, without trial, until the end of time. An endless war. The neocons, Cheney’s, vision of the world is ugly, barbaric, deranged and quite un-American. And all of that is right in Palin’s wheelhouse. Peace
The importance of Cheney’s dismissal of Palin’s “simple political calculations” is a problem for team Sarah. It is something they must address if they hope to take her beyond being a personality with grass roots popularity to someone the wider electoral power.
I think Cheney would like for his daughter to be the first GOP female vice president. I am sure he finds Palin to be an interloper into what he considers the natural order of things. He probably resents her obvious weaknesses when he has been tutoring his well educated and well connected daughter for so long.
Note to Obama Administration…give us more Biden!
To early for serious policy positions/white papers from Palin. Gotta wait until after 11/10 fall out.
Biden was good. His blue collar smack is good for the Administration, as long as he doesn’t go off message.
It should be noted that it was Biden and not Hillary this time.
Don’t have to be “serious policy positions/white papers”, guyski. As long as she’s going on Fox and pontificating, it would behoove her team to supply her with a set of talking points that are more deliberative.
Palin is remaking, recasting herself now. It’s her 2nd chance at getting another opinion from people. She can’t wait until her team writes up opinions that NO ONE will believe she wrote herself. Palin needs more thoughtful answers going forward. It’s not that hard, as Cheney proved today.
Biden was great!
and David Gregory is just awful. He acts as if he is into entertainment rather than news.
It appears to me that the “serious” media network people are so invested in all the crap fed to them by the Bush administration that they are very reluctant to give it up.
I thought Maddow was great and on point with her facts to dispute the current Repub talking points and Gregory did not even know how to respond to her until she got flat out political.
Poor David Brooks is so depressed with the state of things even he wants a third party.
I used to like Bob Schieffer until he became a Bush and or McCain channeler.
Maddow is SMART and she’ll fight to get her say – which is what you have to do with the fellas.
Hey djjl…you guys getting some weather?
Whoooaaa Lake Lady
I didn’t even know the forecast until I just looked because of your comment! LOL. Not yet -supposed to be in a couple of hours through the evening. We’ve had a week of sunshine but we just got the first real melting, yesterday and today, of the 7.5 ” last week.
Of course we were only supposed to get an inch the last time. This is wild weather to say the least. Looks like it’ll just be a little snow and – thankfully – NOT ICE.
I know ice is the killer! That is when the lights go out. We got light snow last night on top of several other light snows with more coming tomorrow and Tuesday. Nothing terrible but a solid week ahead of cold.The lake has been frozen for quite a while. It brings our bald eagle right down to the lake to ice fish. The birds are thankful for my barberries.
I’m not believing this! It is REALLY SNOWING!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lake Lady
It sounds like you live in a spectacular setting….how wonderful. I so enjoy you sharing descriptions of your vignettes.
Interesting take from Joan Walsh at Salon:
http://salon.com/news/opinion/joan_walsh/
snip
“FiveThirtyEight.com’s Nate Silver looked at the electoral map today and hacked out a state by state path for her to get the Republican nomination in 2012. But as Silver acknowledged, it was predicated on the primary and caucus schedule remaining in the same order it was in 2008, which isn’t likely. And it also presupposed no more major gaffes or career-ending stumbles by the former Alaska governor.
But at this point, given Palin’s abysmal standing with American voters, I think Beltway insiders anointing Palin the candidate of real America are the ones showing contempt for real Americans. “
When I read the comments about Palin’s lack of foreign policy credentials, all I can do is think of Barack Obama and his obvious deficiencies in that sphere, let alone his dubious domestic policies. It’s the pot calling the kettle black, and anyone running against Obama in 2012, if he even decides to run again, will surely point this all out. Even Sarah will be able to do this effectively, so I wouldn’t count her out.
amabomon
Do you think there will ever be a point at which voters look to competence? Competence demonstrated as opposed to personality.
btw even if one perceives it as the “pot calling the kettle” – who’s to say that the choice might be for demonstrated competence. Obama would certainly be ahead of Palin.
I would love to see a president who oozes competence. As fo Obama, slowly but surely the veil is being lifted. Obama is neither extraordinarily intelligent nor any other adjectives that his supporters heaped on to him. It has all been a coordinated charade that insults the intelligence. All of his enablers have helped make him who he is.
I see no advantages in comptence when comparing Obama over Palin. If anything, it’s the other way around. Competence does not create the conditions that we currently see in our country. It also doesn’t create a situation in which the majority party, of which Obama leads (yeah, sure), can’t seem to accomplish anything positive. The lack of accomplishment is then blamed on erveryone else including the American voter who is derided for not understanding Obama’s views, explanations, agenda, or priorities. This Democratic version of a supposed great communicator is simply a great propagandist, and many of us have heard more than we care to coming from him.
The outcome of 2012 will be *extremely* influenced by Obama’s choice for VP (it won’t be Joe).
This was a Huge mistake by the Republicans, by the way. Bush should have dropped Cheney in his 2nd election, and bring ‘new young blood’ into constant focus. Because he didn’t, they were shackled with a pitiful grandpa who was forced to make a Hail Mary pageant walker his VP.
– and that would be pretty sad.
Obama’s VP in 2012 will be the 2016 candidate. If not – they’re stupider than I am
Cheney is a war criminal awaiting indictment. At some point in time someone will have the guts to call this murdering, torturing, lawless abomination to task for the horror his warped ego and blind power madness has caused the world.
Hey Secular. I finally figured out imhotep. *L* I think he believes in Magic Pyramids and crop circles. Check my feed-your-pets thread
Oops. Nevermind. LOL I see you already got there.
Heyas! Your new avatar finally kicked in, Sec.
Looks like it was inspired by Achmed, the dead terrorist. *L* You trying to look older than me?
How do you change the avatar?
djjl, I use:
http://en.gravatar.com/site/login
It’s all keyed on your EMail – here (TM) must match ‘there’.
secularhumanizinevoluter says:
14 February 2010 at 10:52 pm
“Cheney is a war criminal awaiting indictment. At some point in time someone will have the guts to call this murdering, torturing, lawless abomination to task for the horror his warped ego and blind power madness has caused the world.”
Well said! That we continue to allow this man to pontificate on his opinions on national television is testimony to the craven state of our national politics.
Don’t know if you’ve seen it but our friend ‘Joe the Plumber’ is now attacking John McCain. *L* The Right wing seems to be getting fond of ‘feeding on each other’ lately.
“McCain was trying to use me,” Wurzelbacher said, according to public radio correspondent Scott Detrow. “I happened to be the face of middle Americans. It was a ploy.”
“I don’t owe him shit,” Wurzelbacher continued. “He really screwed my life up, is how I look at it.”
And he doesn’t like Sarah Palin, either, because she’s going to campaign for McCain’s reelection.
I’m not really understanding that particular attack on Sarah. I mean, let’s see here. Support some guy I’ve never heard of and never met – that hardly anyone else has heard of either –
or support the man that singlehandedly made me into a Multi-Millionaire.
Gee what a tough choice.
I still just get the celtic knot. Don’t get me wrong, I LIKE that panel, but I like the new one to and WOULD like to see it since apparently everybody ELSE can!
Secular, just go get either the ‘Firefox’ or the Google ‘Chrome’ alternate ‘Browser’. You can easily uninstall it later and they use a different ‘cache’ (that’s the problem – the avatar is stored on your hard drive in a ‘cache’). You may even decide you like ‘Chrome’ BETTER than ‘Internet Explorer’.
My daughter went to a “Tea Party” on Saturday just for the experience and because she had nothing better to do. Her reaction to the people was “they’re on the bottom rung of the intelligence scale.” She thinks their agenda is to return to the days of old; they have nothing new to offer except hate and chaos. She was stunned at some of the things she heard people saying. She has concluded that the “Tea Party” has nothing good to offer this country but we better take heed of what is going on with this group. She says that they actually can sound rational and logical in their arguments but unless you sift through their claims you can get taken in.
secular…very good description of that criminal Cheney.I am so sick of the media elevating him.I think they fell for him and his paranoia. and can’t give it up.
The Jane Mayer article I posted in the news is a great conterpoint to Cheney’s opinions.
Jane Austen, from everything I’ve seen, it’s not a T-Party – it’s a 3K-Party -
just renamed.
Somewhat interesting. Ann Coulter weighed in on the Sunday VP exchange. She felt sending out a “drunken Irishman” was a great idea.
Of course, everytime I hear her open her mouth, I can’t help but remember she thinks women should not be allowed to vote. *L*
“I think [women] should be armed but should not [be allowed to] vote. No, they all have to give up their vote, not just, you know, the lady clapping and me. The problem with women voting — and your Communists will back me up on this — is that, you know, women have no capacity to understand how money is earned. They have a lot of ideas on how to spend it. And when they take these polls, it’s always more money on education, more money on child care, more money on day care.”
— Politically Incorrect, Feb. 26, 2001