Mr. President, Ignore Cheney on Afghanistan

Mr. President, please take my advice: Never listen to the nutty advice of former Vice President Dick Cheney.

Trust me; he gave enough dumb advice to former President George W. Bush during their eight years in office together that it's best that he just keep quiet on anything dealing with Iraq or Afghanistan.

Instead of recognizing that his constant pushing for war in Iraq, which had nothing to do with the tragic events on 9/11, has put America in a tenuous position with the rest of the world, including our allies, Dick "I Took Five Deferments So I Wouldn't Have To Serve in Vietnam" Cheney wants to send more of our men and women into Afghanistan with absolutely no clue as to what the game plan is.

How did the clueless policy work in Iraq, Tricky Dick?

In a speech before the conservative Center for Security Policy recently, Cheney opined that President Barack Obama is "afraid" to take the advice of Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal and send thousands of troops into Afghanistan.

"President Obama now seems afraid to make a decision and unable to provide his commander on the ground with the troops he needs to complete his mission," he said.

He added: "The White House must stop dithering while America's armed forces are in danger. ... Make no mistake; signals of indecision out of Washington hurt our allies and embolden our adversaries."

How about this, Dick: Sending American troops into Afghanistan without totally understanding what the heck we are doing, being sure whether the country has a government that is capable of training its own troops, or having a comprehensive strategy further puts our forces in danger and causes more of our own to bury their sons and daughters.

It's amazing that conservatives would rally behind Cheney on this point, considering we witnessed eight years of decision-making by the Bush-Cheney White House based upon the gut rather than upon critical analysis.

President Obama has spent considerable time meeting with his military advisers and policymakers, all in an effort to determine what the best course of action is in Afghanistan, where the situation on the ground has been declared deplorable.

Let me be clear: This has nothing to do with defending the president.

Cheney, along with the rest of the neoconservatives, is all bluster. They are like the masters of the universe who desire to have someone else do their dirty work because they are afraid to put their lives on the line.

I was just in Cincinnati speaking to the city's black chamber of commerce, and I talked to a gentleman who commanded troops during two tours of duty in Iraq. He made it clear that when they hit the ground, there was no plan whatsoever; it was all about securing an area and then figuring out later what to do. This committed solider said it was frustrating not having a game plan, and he fears the same for his military brothers and sisters in Afghanistan.

Is that what we want for our troops? Go in and figure it out later? No!

We have spent eight years in Afghanistan and have nothing to show for it. As of last month, we have lost more than 4,300 American troops in Iraq and 800 in Afghanistan. Mr. Cheney, what did they die for?

President Obama and his advisers should not and cannot make a decision to satisfy liberals or conservatives, Democrats or Republicans. They had better decide what is best for the people who put their lives on the line. And if that means spending two months, six months or even a year figuring out a comprehensive strategy, then so be it.

Because no president should look a parent, wife, husband or small child in the eye and say, "Your son/daughter/parent/sibling lost his/her life because we were in a rush to do something for the sake of doing something."

Roland S. Martin is an award-winning CNN analyst and the author of the forthcoming book "The First: President Barack Obama's Road to the White House as originally reported by Roland S. Martin." Please visit his Web site at www.RolandSMartin.com. To find out more about Roland S. Martin and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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