Friday, July 31, 2009

Colin Powell VS Dick Cheney






















Hey Vice-Precedence Readers! Well, last night decorated war hero, former Joint Chief of Staff, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell was on Larry King. Powell is arguably the most prominent black Republican in the country and worked with Dick Cheney many times over the years, during Operation Desert Storm during the Persian Gulf War, and the War on Terror.

However, that doesn't mean they get along or like each other. Before giving his presentation at the United Nations Security Council justifying the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 where it was later revealed that some of the evidence he presented was incorrect, Vice-President Cheney kidded with him saying:

""You've got high poll ratings; you can afford to lose a few points."

Powell's longtime assistant, Colonel Lawrence B. Wilkerson, later characterized Cheney's view of Powell's job at the U.N. Council was to "go up there and sell it, and we'll have moved forward a peg or two. Fall on your damn sword and kill yourself, and I'll be happy, too." in an interview with Karen DeYoung in 2006.

Powell also endorsed Obama for President instead of McCain in the last election, and former VP Cheney and Rush Limbaugh have both said they don't think Powell is truly part of the Republican Party due to this and Powells other moderate beliefs, such as being for some "reasonable" gun control, being pro-choice, and support of affirmative action. Cheney even went as far to side with Limbaugh in his dispute and criticism of Powell by stating on CBS's "Face the Nation":

"My take on it was Colin had already left the party -- I didn't know he was still a Republican."

So there's obviously bad blood between them and has been for awhile.

So last night on Larry King-who's somehow still on the air and alive-(I suspect he bathes in the blood of infants, but there's lots of theories out there)-The Suspenderd One asked him about Cheney and their differences.

Larry King-Dick Cheney has said that Obama's policies have made Americans less safe. Do you buy that?

Colin Powell-No, I don't think we're less safe. I think the country has done a lot over the last eight years, under President Bush's administration and now under President Obama's administration, to protect our borders, to go after the enemy. We've stabilized the situation in Iraq and turned it over to the Iraqis. The president has gone after the Taliban in Afghanistan. We have a department of Homeland Security. I still get stopped every time I go through an airport.

Larry King-They stop you?

Colin Powell-Yes. Oh, yes. I have to go through security like anyone else. And they -- because I am sometimes frequently seen about town, they make sure that they do an especially thorough job. That's part of our security. What Former Vice President Cheney was talking about, I think, was some of the interrogation techniques and detention and techniques...

Larry King-Yes, what did you make of that?

Colin Powell-And some of the things that our National Security Agency was doing. I don't think any of that has been terminated. I think what the administration -- the current administration is trying to do is to make sure we've thought all of these policies through and they rest on a sound basis of law.

Larry King-Is torture a good idea?

Colin Powell-No.

Also, Ian Allen of IntelNews.org reports that officials in the Obama Administration are pressuring Judge Emmet G. Sullivan to not release the transcripts of Vice-President Cheneys interview with prosecutors about the leak of ex-CIA agent Valerie Plame on the grounds of national security. It may be another 5 or 10 years before they are released-at least that's the recommendation of the Department of Justice. Critics say that there might be proof in those transcripts that President Bush and the VP knew about the leak and were even the source of the leak. How will Judge Sullivan rule? When we know-you'll know. Thanks for reading and have a great weekend.

No comments:

Post a Comment