Former Vice President Dick Cheney, one of the leading advocates for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, said President Obama’s approach to the Middle East has embolden Islamic extremists and put the nation at risk.
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed co-authored with his daughter Liz, Mr. Cheney called for a reversal of the policies of the last six years, which included pulling troops out of Iraq.
“It is time the president and his allies faced some hard truths: America remains at war, and withdrawing troops from the field of battle while our enemies stay in the fight does not ’end’ wars,” they wrote “Weakness and retreat are provocative. U.S. withdrawal from the world is disastrous and puts our own security at risk.”
The criticism comes as the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) continues to gain a foothold in western and northern Iraq and threatens to destabilize the entire region.
President Obama plans to meet with congressional leaders on Wednesday to talk about how to stop Iraq from spiraling further into chaos.
The Washington Times reported Tuesday that Obama administration called for calm between the Sunni and Shiites and said that a top American diplomat has met privately with Iranian officials in Vienna to urge Iran’s Shiite neighbor to embrace a similar posture.
SEE ALSO: Sunni secularists blur picture of ISIL; targets for airstrikes hard to see
Democrats, meanwhile, have defended Mr. Obama and blamed the failed policies of President George W. Bush for paving the way for the disaster in Iraq.
They also point to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki refusal to sign off on an agreement to keep U.S. forces in the country.
Democrats and Republicans voted in 2002 to give Mr. Bush the authorization to use force.
Mr. Cheney said in the op-ed that the Obama administration has made a mess of the situation since taking office.
“Rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many,” Mr. Cheney wrote. “Too many times to count, Mr. Obama has told us he is ’ending’ the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — as though wishing made it so. His rhetoric has now come crashing into reality.”
“Watching the black-clad ISIS jihadists take territory once secured by American blood is final proof, if any were needed, that America’s enemies are not ’decimated,’” he said. “They are emboldened and on the march.”
SEE ALSO: Obama feels heat of combusting Iraq
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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