Vice President Joseph R. Biden took took time out of a Harvard speech on Thursday to criticize former Secretary of State and Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.
While answering a question on the timing of U.S. military engagement in Syria, Mr. Biden said it was “inappropriate” for cabinet officials to author books about the White House before the president leaves office, Time reported Friday.
“We Americans think in every country in transition there’s a Thomas Jefferson hiding behind some rock, or a James Madison beyond one sand dune. The fact of the matter is, the ability to identify a moderate middle in Syria was — there was no moderate middle — because the moderate middle are made up of shopkeepers, not soldiers,” Mr. Biden said.
The vice president then veered off course, saying, “And what happened was — and their history will record this, because I’m finding that former administration officials, as soon as they leave write books, which I think is inappropriate. But any rate — no, I’m serious. I do think it’s inappropriate. At least give the guy a chance to get out of office.”
Mrs. Clinton’s “Hard Choices” recounts her unsuccessful attempts to persuade Mr. Obama to arm Syrian rebels in 2012, saying “The risks of both action and inaction were high. Both choices would bring unintended consequences. The President’s inclination was to stay the present course and not take the significant further step of arming rebels.”
Mr. Panetta’s “Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace” laments the early withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, which he believes led to the rise of the Islamic State group.
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“To my frustration, the White House coordinated the negotiations but never really led them. Officials there seemed content to endorse an agreement if State and Defense could reach one, but without the President’s active advocacy, al-Maliki was allowed to slip away. The deal never materialized. To this day, I believe that a small U.S. troop presence in Iraq could have effectively advised the Iraqi military on how to deal with al-Qaeda’s resurgence and the sectarian violence that has engulfed the country,” Mr. Panetta writes.
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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