The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

    Cheney should check facts before speaking

    Former Vice President Dick Cheney was busy offering up a wide variety of scathing criticisms on numerous policy initiatives undertaken by the Obama Administration on ABC News’ “This Week.”

    Cheney responded to a statement recently made by Vice President Joseph Biden with respect to the likelihood of a 9/11 magnitude terrorist attack by saying “You have to consider it as something we may have to deal with tomorrow. You don’t want the vice president of the United States running around saying, ‘Oh, it’s not likely going to happen.’”

    Cheney’s statement ignores the possibility that Biden’s concerns are less intense than Cheney’s due to increased efforts to counter terror activity at its source in Afghanistan and in the tribal lands of Pakistan, initiatives that Cheney praised during the very same interview.

    With respect to Abdulmutallab, the “underwear bomber”, Cheney declined to accept the fact that the Bush Administration acted in a similar fashion in dealing with Richard Reid, the “shoe bomber.” Cheney continued to criticize Eric Holder, the attorney general, for putting Abdulmutallab through the criminal justice system instead of treating him as an unlawful criminal combatant and subjecting him to a military tribunal. In a statement made by United States District Court Judge William Young, a Reagan appointee, concerning the status of Richard Reid, he stated that “You are not an enemy combatant. You are a terrorist… To give you that reference, to call you a soldier gives you far too much stature.” The unending ambiguity of judicial opinions and definitions seems to be at the very heart of Cheney’s criticism on this issue. Cheney is attacking the interpretation and institutional developments of the Obama administration while failing to note the lethargic pace with which the Bush administration developed frightening means to accommodate their interpretations.

    Eric Brickman,

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