What's that smell? Oh, Cheney's speaking

By Lee Russ

Wednesday, October 04, 2006 at 04:00 PM

Dick Cheney may well be the worst politician in recent memory and I'd be willing to go for even money that he's one of the worst persons to serve in the federal government in quite some time.  For example, from the Dept. of Defense web site (emphasis & [commentary] added):

Terrorists Destined to Lose if U.S. Keeps Resolve, Cheney Says
By Steven Donald Smith
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 - Terrorists are destined to lose if the U.S. keeps its nerve and refuses to abandon its overseas commitments, Vice President Richard B. Cheney said today at Fort Hood, Texas.

"The world can have confidence in the resolve of the United States," he said. "We will stand by our friends; we will help Iraqis build a nation that is free, secure and able to defend itself. We will confront our enemies on this and every other front in the war on terror. With good allies at our side, we will prevail."

Cheney said the terrorists were at war with the United States before the U.S. began fighting back. "Terrorists were at war with our country long before the liberation of Iraq and the attacks of 9/11," he said.

He refuted claims that America's presence in Iraq has made terrorism worse and reminded people the U.S. was not in Iraq on Sept. 11, 2001. "Americans are fighting (in Iraq) and Afghanistan because our security demands it," Cheney said. [That's a refutation?  Must be a new meaning of the word.]

Winning the war against terror requires the U.S. to continue to capture and kill terrorists, Cheney said. [Oddly, I think the NIE implies that when this is your main tactic, you create more of them than you kill] "If we have learned anything from modern experience, it is this: the only way to protect this country against terrorism is to stay on the offensive, to pursue the enemy until there is no place left to hide, and to stay in the fight until the fight is won," he said.

These are challenging times in American history, Cheney said. The U.S. faces an enemy that kills indiscriminately, as was evidenced by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. "This year, (Osama) bin Laden's second in command used the anniversary (of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks) to issue more words of hatred for our country and more threats of murder."

The terrorists recognize no rule of warfare and accept no standard of morality, he said. "They have declared their intention to bring great harm to any nation that opposes their aims," he said. "Their prime targets are the United States and the American people."

The U.S. must keep enough troops on the battlefield to prevent future attacks on the homeland, he said. "Any decisions about troop levels will be driven by conditions on the ground and the judgment of our commanders, not by artificial timelines set by politicians," he said.[Strangely, the record now pretty clearly shows that the judgment of commanders is, in fact, controlled by politicians, chiefly Mr. Cheney, Mr. Rumsfeld, and Mr. Bush]

Cheney told the Fort Hood audience that Americans are grateful for their service. "This is not a country that takes its military for granted," he said. "We are a democracy defended by volunteers who deserve all the tools and support we can possibly provide."

Cheney thanked the soldiers of Fort Hood for their commitment to winning the war on terror. "The dangers have been many; the duties have been hard; and your performance has been superb," he said.
[I'll say.  And best of all, not a one of them had "other priorities" when called to duty.]

"Each time I visit a military base I come away with renewed confidence in the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States," he said. "Each one of you has dedicated yourself to serving our country and its ideals."

Yeeesh.  I wonder how many of the poor soldiers had to sit through this in the audience, unable to wretch or scream until released by their superiors.