Petraeus Rejects Cheney Comments, Says US No Less Safe Under Obama (VIDEO)

On CNN Sunday, General David Petraeus countered former Vice President Dick Cheney's recent claim that Obama's administration had made America less safe.

"I wouldn't necessarily agree with that," said the general, who has served under both administrations. "I think that there is in fact a good debate going on about the importance of values in everything we do. If one violates the values we hold so dear, we jeopardize [our troops]."

Watch:

Cheney argued that Obama's new detainee policies, meant to bring U.S. policy more in line with our values, had left the country open to attack.

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Comments

[BillMelater]

In other words, Bush/Cheney policies did more to threaten the U.S.A. than to help it.

[HereComesTrouble]

Afghanistan = Viet Namm

[NoelGreco]

Well, it was the Dems who got us into trouble there, wasn't it?

[Nagarjuna]

How do you figure that one?

[bubbuh]

Our involvement in Vietnam began in 1954

[ToniaB]

Obama did not start the forgotten war in Afghanistan; then take his eye off the ball. He is trying to fix the mess that Bush and Cheney left there. Don't try to pin this on him!!

[HereComesTrouble]

George Orwell wrote his famous novel "1984" in 1949 but it is coming true in 2009.

[OriginalScreenName]

There's got to be a creation of a new law along the lines of Godwin's that calls people out who try to use Orwell then they don't know what they are talking about.

[BillMelater]

Agreed. This lunkhead doesn't realize Karl Rove's playbook was written by Orwell.

[liberalbug]

Yes, it really is, now, isn't it? Scary sheeet!

[Adjuster]

Clean skies initiative
No child left behind
Patriot act
Compassionate conservative

All are examples of boosh administration Orwell-speak.

[sansego2000]

Dick was just talking crazy. No information or intelligence to back up anything he said. Well why would Cheney let intelligence and information be deciding factors now, he didn't when he was vice president.

[HereComesTrouble]

isnt he the general that 0bama and hillary s.h.a.t on when he appeared before the Senate?

[Adjuster]

Examples/links please...didn't think so.

[AliMB]

I don't find anything revealing about General Petraeus' comment; he was diplomatically answering a politicized question.

He cannot go out and criticize VP C h e n e y's comments because he was a former boss (and one who put a great deal of confidence in his leadership). Likewise, he cannot say "of course President Obama has made us less safe" (even if he believed it) because that would be an inappropriate comment as the leader of CENTCOM. When presented with such a controversial subject, he has to defend the sitting Commander in Chief. Thus, his words (particularly the "good debate") part was a sagacious choice of words.

This is part of the reason that General Petraeus is one of the most intelligent public servants in the United States, and why he is our finest serving officer (maybe in the past 50 years).

[rsprags]

Thank General P for the truth; it is so refreshing despite the fact that King was not pleased with your answers!

[Cycadeoidea]

Put that in your smoke and pipe it, Dick.

[Greg Petty]

O my god, someone like McCAINS IDOL DISAGREES WITH CHENEY wow what next , Steele slaps Rush down again , with his double secret , operative moves, to confuse us Democrats, Inspector gadget has no game compared to The man of Steele,SUPER REPUBLICAN

[HereComesTrouble]

Two possible GOP pickups are the seats of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut. Polling in those states has found both men on remarkably shaky ground.

Brown says Dodd’s connections to the AIG and Countrywide scandals make him vulnerable to a possible primary fight.

[Adjuster]

That's about the best news the G O Ppers have had in over a year...a poll has 2 dems behind generic nonames...time for some champagne yet guys?

[Actionman]

GOP to Patraeus: you betrayus.

[AliMB]

You do know that General Petraeus is a career military officer who has no affiliation with the GOP?

[HereComesTrouble]

MoveOn is a democratic group that supported 0bama

[swift goat pet for truth]

and if he disagreed with Bush for 2 seconds, he would be ex-general Patraeus.

[HereComesTrouble]

MoveOn called him General Betrayus

[SethBLiNK]

When you read it, it sounds like he's not taking a side "don't necessarily agree".

But when you watch the clip it is clear that he disagrees with the policies of torture.

[AngieMom57]

Basic human behavior says that if you are sane it takes an insane mentality to "torture" another human being or mammal; end of debate. So getting confessions by using torture are never reliable; or humane; the barbaric side of human nature is odd to behold.

[AngieMom57]

General Patraeus has stayed physically fit, and it makes me wonder if he knows that if we get a computer in the hands of civilians and they more often than not become "addicted" to its use as an information tool; for no matter what nationality or religious belief the computer is the new paradigms drug of choice.

Is this good or bad that is never the question with addictions, it simply is; just as electri y was the invisible honored guest, the telephone, now the computer with high-speed internet; come to think of it, someone tell North Korea that it's not about missiles it's about satellites.

[HereComesTrouble]

yeah he was gr8 but hillary and 0bama gave it to him when he appeared in the senate

[Right-turn]

I like to hear that. He is in a position to know.

[Fathoms]

John King is a fool. General Petraeus serves in the United States Military. He does not work in this, or that Administration. I may not always agree with the General's tactics and strategies, however my hat is off to the man. I know from observation that he is keeping true to the oath he took. That is more than I can say for the bulk of the Senators,Representatives and Supreme Court Justices we suffer to govern us from the castles we built them inside the Beltway.

[AngieMom57]

During "Bush-World: Enter At Your Own Risk" it was the old dysfunctional fear driven policies.

Now the new paradigm is ushering itself in with or without our blessings, and the young folks are already "acting as if"...so

"...if u can't lend a hand then get out of the way, for the times they are a changing...."

[Fathoms]

Somehow, I don't think we're having an argument. Check my Profile and get back to me . . .

[HereComesTrouble]

i suspect that the senate will lose dodd and reid this time around

[BruceHNV]

Because you don't actually know anything about elections in their home states.

Either one, if they lost, it would be in the primary - to another democrat.

[NoelGreco]

"I think that there is in fact a good debate going on about the importance of values in everything we do. If one violates the values we hold so dear, we jeopardize [our troops]."

Hear that HPers? Values.

[Nagarjuna]

I think he's referring to our abhorrence of torture. Isn't that how you read it, Noel?

[lungfish]

Right on, General P. ,
The Cheney attempt to justify and rewrite history while fearmongering is as lame as his party....

[SmootyBooty]

all too simple. the conservative view: if we are attacked while W is prez, it is the fault of the attackers. if we are attacked while O is prez, the prez is to blame.
they take us for suckers...