If only Dick Cheney had ‘dithered’ on Iraq

In a remarkable example of chutzpah, Vice President Dick Cheney – the man who wouldn’t go away- has accused the president of ‘dithering’ in reaching a decision on a further troop build-up in Afghanistan.

This from the man who led the rush into Iraq because (a) Saddam had participated in 9-11, (b) Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, (c) Iraq posed a massive threat to the United States or (d) all of the above.

After the almost 4500 dead American soldiers that have been shipped home with the 31,000 who were seriously injured, and after some $700 billion that won’t be coming home, we now know all too well that there needed to be an option (e), none of the above.

If only Dick Cheney had ‘dithered’ a bit before rushing this country into a war that never needed to be.

Meanwhile, another $300 billion was wasted in Afghanistan where the Bush administration took its eye completely off the ball to pursue the waste of life and resources in the effort to fulfill the neoconservative dream of an American style democracy in Iraq  – something that was never going to happen.

Making Cheney’s charges all the more outrageous is the fact that he, as much as anyone, was guilty of ignoring Afghanistan for seven years, allowing troop requests to sit, unanswered, on his desk for long periods of time.

According to White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs-

It is a curious comment given… I think it is pretty safe to say that the vice president was for seven years not focused on Afghanistan. Even more curious given the fact that an increase in troops sat on desks in this White House including the vice president’s for more than eight months — a resource request filled by President Obama in March.
Via Swamp Politics

So, wrong on Iraq and wrong on Afghanistan. And, if Richard Clarke is to be believed, wrong to ignore the warnings of what was coming on September 11, 2001.

The question must be asked – where does Dick Cheney get off giving the current administration, or, for that matter, anyone else, advice on when, where and how to fight a war?

Oh, for the days when Dick Cheney was sequestered in an undisclosed location and blissfully silent.