Victor Davis Hanson: Cheney Agonistes

NRO Corner ^ | May 13, 2009 | Victor Davis Hanson

[Tolik]

What is strange about the furor over the Cheney interviews is that so many of the arguments against them simply have no precedent or logic.

1. If one were to say the vice president emeritus, as a matter of understood decorum, should refrain from criticism of the subsequent administration, then why did former vice president Al Gore — to the delight of much of the media — go on a virtual barnstorming crusade against the Bush administration in language far more partisan and hysterical (e.g., "He [Bush] lied to us! He betrayed this country! He played on our fears!")?
2. If one were to say that the vice president was representing some fringe position on the status of detainees at Guantánamo, then one need only review the transcript of Attorney General Eric Holder’s 2002 CNN interview when Holder explicitly said those at Guantánamo could be held indefinitely for the duration of the war and were without the benefit of the protections offered by the Geneva Convention Accords.
3. If one were to argue Cheney is simply covering his tracks on the subject of waterboarding, then one need only be reminded that Cheney admits he was briefed and approved the techniques and now candidly tells us why he did so -- while the Speaker of the House was likewise briefed, and by her silence as a congressional overseer approved de facto the techniques, but now quite disingenuously denied such complicity at the very time she seeks to ruin the careers of lawyers who merely offered opinions rather than set or oversaw policy.
4. If one were to believe that Cheney  was selectively trying to refashion the past, then consider that

(a) his points are clearly in reply to the Obama’s administration’s own prior selective release of Bush-administration legal counsel briefs, done for partisan political purposes and over the objections of career CIA officers, and

(b) Cheney is asking for full, let-the-chips-fall-where-they-may disclosure in his requests to make the entire record public of both the interrogations and their relevance to preventing further attacks.

In short, while pundits still believe Cheney is a marginalized figure and an easy target of scorn, in fact, his methodical defense of the past is both logical and principled, and is beginning to illustrate, in quite painful fashion, the utter hypocrisy of the entire Democratic position on enhanced interrogations techniques and Guantánamo Bay. The American people more likely agree with Cheney than not; and even if they did not, they still prefer a candid and honest opponent to a disingenuous and self-serving ally.

As a footnote: In these Machiavellian times, it almost seems that the White House and some in the Democratic Congress who are still calling for hearings are at ease embarrassing Nancy Pelosi, whose prior value to the party as anti-Bush bomb thrower has now been eclipsed, since she appears as a looney, undisciplined partisan that can do far more damage to the cause than she ever did to Bush

[Tolik]

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/victordavishanson/index:

President Palin’s First 100 Days. Imagine if Sarah Palin had Obama’s record

Cracks in the Facade. Fissures in the Obama Totem

Once Upon a Time in 2002

Why Did Republicans Lose Their Appeal? And how can they get it back?

Americans Want It Both Ways Our Have-It-Both-Ways Generation

What to Do About Pakistan = There are no good answers.

Illegal Immigration Realities

Questions from Oceania

Our Jekyll and Hyde President. More radical than Jimmy Carter v smoother centrist than Bill Clinton?

Nothing New Under the Sun [Equality of Result, American vs. French, etc]

Damnation of Memory. Persecuting his predecessors, Obama would establish a poisonous precedent

Crazy Times — Crazier Times to Follow - when nonsense is passed off as wisdom

Confessions of a Contrarian [deconstructing Obama, the Left and more]

Obamatopia

Can We Get Beyond Race?

Our New Sort of War. It might be the most dangerous of all

President of the World ...deeply pessimistic view of what America was and is

The Politics Of Blame

The Postnational, Postmodern, Post-everything Presidential Trip

 President Obama’s First 70 Days. It really does all make sense

G-20 Outtakes. Europe Got Obama, Now What? Obama is moving to the left of Europe

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly —Part Three of Three [The Good]

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly —Part Two of Three [The Ugly]

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly —Part One of Three

American Mob Rule. We need a Socrates in Washington right now

Thoughts About Depressed Americans

Bush Did It. What a difference an election makes [Brilliant Parody]

Dr. Obama: First, Do No Harm. Let nature do its work

 Our Battered American [gets angrier - Must Read Rant]

[Tolik]

    Victor Davis Hanson Ping ! 

       Let me know if you want in or out.

Links:    FR Index of his articles:  http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=victordavishanson
                His website: http://victorhanson.com/
                NRO archive: http://www.nationalreview.com/hanson/hanson-archive.asp
                Pajamasmedia:   http://victordavishanson.pajamasmedia.com/

[Tax-chick]

Excellent observations from Hanson. Mr. Cheney is making the Democrats look like a creepy junior-high-school clique, and they don’t like it a bit!

[randita]

In these Machiavellian times, it almost seems that the White House and some in the Democratic Congress who are still calling for hearings are at ease embarrassing Nancy Pelosi, whose prior value to the party as anti-Bush bomb thrower has now been eclipsed, since she appears as a looney, undisciplined partisan that can do far more damage to the cause than she ever did to Bush.

Bingo! That's why she's going to be hung out to dry, IMO.

[Hugin]

Leftists have their own “logic”. Their syllogisms go, “Cheney is a neocon. Neocons are evil. Therefore anything Cheney does is wrong/evil”, and “Pelosi is a progressive. Progressives are good. Therefore anything Pelosi does it good/right.”

[Jeff Head]

Cheney is a loyal American, true to his oath to the Constitution, and true to his duty to the United States of America, her people, and her interests.

Obama and his administration are marxist ideologs who are only true to that ideology which has thems drunk on what they perceive as their path to more and more power, and who twist their interpretation of their oath...and everything else...to that end.

THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH ABOUT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA IN HIS OWN WORDS

NOW WE KNOW WHAT A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER DOES

OBAMA, THE STOCK MARKET, AND ENERGY

THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH ABOUT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA'S UPBRINGING

IT'S TIME FOR A RETURN TO THE OLD SCHOOL

[668 - Neighbor of the Beast]

"...it almost seems that the White House [is] at ease embarrassing Nancy Pelosi"

Indeed it does.

(She's only lucky it isn't the Hillary Clinton White House.)

[dforest]

I was listening to and watching Cheney on Cavuto’s show the other day.

It was nice listening to an intelligent man who has this nation’s best interests in mind.

He was an adult. He shows what cheap, ignorant, dangerous, disingenuous fools we have in charge at this time.

God help us.

[jr.ewing.78]

For the life of me, I cannot understand the utter lunacy with which some people hate Dick Cheney and I don’t think I ever will. It’s simply irrational and insane.

[Josa]

I think Dick Cheney is one of the smartest patriots in this country. He is unflappable and calls a spade a spade (no racist intent).

He’s the adult in the room.

[Christian4Bush]

VDH bump

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Cheney was the target of an eight year smear by the MSM and unfortunately, did little to combat it. Future GOP leaders should remember to keep their elbows sharp.

[maica]

It was nice listening to an intelligent man who has this nation’s best interests in mind.

$$$$

I still remember fondly the debate that he had with Joe Lieberman in the fall of 2000. One of the best debates I have ever seen. Cheney smiled and spoke in his modulated voice the whole time, as he positively put skewers into the hide of Lieberman.

[rodguy911]

Poor piglosi,Pinocchio is not her friend.

[angcat]

My friend who is now deployed is complaining that “Cheney's” “KBR” company is doing security detail the same that he is doing for 90K. How many times can I tell my darling Solider friend that Cheney has nothing to do with KBR and has not for at least ten years. The soldiers are annoyed that KBR civilian's are getting paid much more than they are!

[Savage Beast]

"In these Machiavellian times..."

Clear observation, Vic.

If we had an effective method for identifying and constraining psychopaths, pathological liars, and similar dangerous dysfunctionals, Washington would become a ghost town.

Imagine the kind of people who are drawn to Washington--the political power center of the richest, most powerful nation in history--and at a time when Western Civilization itself teters at the brink of decadence; the American people are unconcerned about of acceleration of money and power flowing into Washington; and the press, universities, and Hollywood serve as a propaganda machine, encouraging the flow and the decadence itself.

[metesky]

No doubt about it: Dick Cheney is The Man!

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I think you’re on to something...

[Tupelo]

Dick Cheney was maybe the last honest man in Washington District of Corruption. He and his wife Lynn were a class act in a classless town.
If the current government decides to go after him, I will be first in line to defend him.