Cheney: Obama policy hurts anti-terror efforts

Source: Xinhua | 03-16-2009 08:05

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney claimed on Sunday that the Obama administration has opened the country to further terror attacks by reversing Bush administration policies.

File photo shows former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, October 1, 2008.  (Xinhua/Reuters File Photo)

In an interview with CNN's "State of the Union," Cheney also asserted that the former Bush administration's heavily-criticized interrogation techniques were "absolutely essential" to preventing further terror attacks on U.S. soil.

"President (Barack) Obama campaigned against it all across the country, and now he is making some choices that, in my mind, will, in fact, raise the risk to the American people of another attack," Cheney said.

He also defended the invasion of Iraq in 2003, saying "we've accomplished nearly everything we set out to do."

Since taking office in January, Obama has announced plans to reverse many of the Bush administration's anti-terror policies, notably the closing of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the ban on torture during interrogations of terror suspects.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei