Cheney Has "No Regrets" Over Interrogation Policies, War On Terror (VIDEO)

Former Vice President Dick Cheney said on Sunday, that he had no regrets about the course of actions he and the Bush administration pursued when it came to interrogating suspected terrorists or, more broadly, waging the war on terror.

"No regrets," Cheney declared during an appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation." "I think it was absolutely the right thing to do. I am convinced, absolutely convinced, that we saved thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of lives."

Watch:

The interview was another in a wave of post-White House remarks from the controversial former vice president. On Sunday, Cheney insisted that he was speaking out because "the issues are so important." President Obama, he added, had "moved to take down a lot of those policies we put in place to keep the nation safe for eight years."

His public appearances have not been without controversy. Cheney has often taken the hardest of partisan lines against the current president and voiced the loudest public defenses of harsh interrogation techniques. Sunday was much of the same, with the former VP insisting the Bush administration had tried less controversial interrogation approaches to limited effect.

"Remember what happened here," he said. "We had captured these people. We had pursued interrogation in a normal way. We decided that we needed some enhanced techniques. So we went to the Justice Department and the controversy has arisen over the opinions written by the Justice Department. The reason we went to the Justice Department wasn't because we felt we were going to take some kind of freehand assault on these people, that we were in the torture business. We weren't. ... if we had been about torture we wouldn't have wasted our time going to the Justice Department."

Perhaps the most remarkable moment of the interview, however, came when Cheney was asked if President Bush himself had signed off on the interrogation program. His response left the impression that Bush was brought into the loop only as a legal or political formality.

"I certainly have every reason to believe that he knew a great deal about the program," he said. "He basically authorized it. I mean, this was a presidential level decision. And the decision went to the president. He signed off on it."

Get HuffPost Politics On Facebook and Twitter!

Comments

[Mo in VA]

What a small pathetic man he is. Why people empowered him to be a bully is incomprehensible.

[leonel]

HANDLING THE HIGH LEVEL ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY.

Cheney fits under the DIAGNOSTIC AND STATISTICAL MANUAL OF MENTAL DISORDERS. He can be diagnosed as "Antisocial Personality Disorder." (page 649-650):
A. There is a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others occirring since age 15 years, as indicated by three (or more) of the following:
(1) failure to conform to social nors with respect to lawful behaviors as indicated by repeated acts that are grounds for arrest
(2) deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying, use of aliases. or conning othere for personal profit or pleasure
(3) impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
(4) irritability and aggressiveness, as indicated by repeated physical fights or assaults
(5) reckless disregard for safety of self or others
(6) consistent irresponsibility, as indicated by repeated failure to sustain consistent work behavior or hon financial obligations
(7) lack of remorse, as indicated by being indifferent to or rationalizing having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another

Normally people misbehave to a point, nobody is perfect, but clear indication is usually having anger problem, regular illegal behavior, and failure to regret. Criminals do not need to be shouting all the time, but they see no wrong in illegal misbehavior, many are not caught, and if so are hostile.

[Grunty1]

Sounds like lil' D!cky to me...

[InfinteShibumi]

He's batting a thousand on the Hare checklist.

[leonel]

Sorry for the misspellings. You can look up personality disorders on the web.

[lornejl]

BigDick made a mockery of the Constitution and the rule of law for 8 years.
You think he will stop now ?
He loves to rub our face in it.

[Genep34]

He and his fellow Bush enablers will be to blame when our soldiers are tortured in the same way by our enemies. They have guaranteed this will happen and they have assured that we have no moral or ethical recourse.

They will also be at fault when we get hit again because they have guaranteed this also by spilling th blood of hundreds of thousands of innocents in Iraq for no reason at all.

[PiscesPrincess]

Dickie really has it in for W for not pardoning his Chief of Staff, Scooter.
He just deep-sixed the former POTUS. Sad, the lengths the Dark One will go to ...
sad. and bad.

[judiNJ]

Uh oh! Bush under the bus. Cheney must be getting nervous.

[WoodyIV]

The Ex-VP is aptley named.

[Chi-townfool]

I have no regrets about this post!!!!

[Badfickle]

How about we follow George Washington's orders. Except instead of apply it to soldiers apply it to the guys at the top.

"Should any American soldier be so base and infamous as to injure any [prisoner]. . . I do most earnestly enjoin you to bring him to such severe and exemplary punishment as the enormity of the crime may require. Should it extend to death itself, it will not be disproportional to its guilt at such a time and in such a cause... for by such conduct they bring shame, disgrace and ruin to themselves and their country."

- George Washington, charge to the Northern Expeditionary Force, Sept. 14, 1775

[DandyWarhol]

Stellar post! WIN.

[Badfickle]

You might like this one too.

"Treat them with humanity, and let them have no reason to complain of our copying the brutal example of the British Army in their treatment of our unfortunate brethren who have fallen into their hands,"

-George Washington following the Battle of Trenton 1776

"Not only your Officers, and Soldiers have been treated with a Tenderness due to Fellow Citizens, & Brethren; but even those execrable Parricides [traitors] whose Counsels & Aid have deluged their Country with Blood, have been protected from the Fury of a justly enraged People."

-George Washington Aug19 1775

[Mo in VA]

Cheney wasn't a soldier. He wouldn't know about that, or care.

[jasjohn128]

Great find, thanks.

[Grunty1]

George Dubya was no Washington, unfortunately.

[InfinteShibumi]

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. This should be Article 1 in the prosecution of Cheney et al.

[WeMustSpeakOut]

The D|CK continues his CYA tour.
Coming soon to a strong-armed media outlet near you.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

All former administration officials regardless of party or political ideology try not to implicate there bosses, as was the case with Nixon and and Reagan during Iran Contra. I heard Dick Cheney without and hesitation implicate George W. Bush in a war crime, as well as himself, Cheney was point blank if President Bush knew or approved of the policy and he answered in the affirmative, on national TV, putting his president at legal risk, I could not believe what I heard.

Cheney also flat out lied about the admiration's awareness of OBL, prior to 9-11, after attacking Bill Clinton for not taking him out in the late 90's. Richard Clark fully briefed Cheney and Rice on the threat, and Cheney agreed to be create a task force, yet never held a meeting on the subject until weeks prior to 9-11, one of reasons for Clark's eventual resignation. Cheney was to busy with his oil CEO friends, holding secret energy task force meetings at the time.

Cheney lied when he stated that the Obama Administration want to go prosecute or disbar ranking Bush officials, namely the lawyers Bybee and Yoo. If Bybee is to be impeached, than Congress would have to do it, if Yoo is to be disbarred, than it up to the Bar Association, not Obama. Cheney seems to to forcing his own prosecution, as well as Bush for war crimes, something Obama has been trying to avoid.

[wdw505]

i am sure cheney was aware that there was no "admiration" of obl

laughing

[judiNJ]

Uh oh, Bush under the bus! This guy is trying to cover his a** so much now it is almost funny. Can you imagine someone being interviewed and saying, "well, yes we did murder a member of the apposing party, and yes, I am convinced the President knew about it, but it was, uh, necessary to keep the GOP safe"...? Keep it up, Dick!! You make your party look SICK.

[sippewissett]

I'm encouraged that when the current administration finds enough of Cheney's "dirty tricks" to jail him, it will be Cheney's own words that help sink him. If he were smart, he'd go away quietly, but he and Rove are intent on rewriting history so that might include his being arrested...or so I hope. Cheney's egregious over-stepping of legal boundaries in many areas, not just torture, SHOULD catch up with his arrogance and unrepentent style of monarchy.

[wdw505]

everyone needs a hobby

[AZterritory]

Huffpost--putting his surly snarly mug on for 3 days counts as torture, doesn't it?

[Diogenis]

of the third degree.

[legalgirl]

Exactly, Grey Cells. Last week, Condi "merely conveyed the President's authorization" to torture. Yesterday, Bush was "basically in the loop" and that is was a "presidential level decision." Just keep giving those interviews, guys. You're doing just fine.

[PiscesPrincess]

and we got all this info w/o wat@rb0arding him. wow.