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October 6, 2004
Vice President Cheney's seemingly calm and experienced demeanor in last night's debate obscured serious factual inaccuracies and outright deceptions. Most seriously, the vice president – chief architect of the war in Iraq – denied his previous, documented claims about a connection between Saddam Hussein, al Qaeda, and the 9/11 attacks.
- Cheney deception #1: "I have not suggested there's a connection between Iraq and 9/11." Cheney has suggested this link on multiple occasions, specifically emphasizing contacts between Iraqi officials and Mohammed Atta, one of the 9/11 hijackers. Appearing on Meet the Press on 12/9/01, Cheney said it has "been pretty well confirmed, that he [Atta] did go to Prague and he did meet with a senior official of the Iraqi intelligence service in Czechoslovakia last April, several months before the attack." The 9/11 Commission concluded there was no evidence supporting this claim. When asked on Meet the Press on 9/14/03 if he was surprised that 69 percent of the public believed Saddam Hussein was involved with the 9/11 attacks, Cheney responded, "I think it's not surprising that people make that connection."
- Cheney deception #2: "The first time I ever met you was when you walked on the stage tonight." The vice president has met Sen. Edwards before – at a National Prayer Breakfast in 2001. In fact, he directly thanked Sen. Edwards before delivering his own remarks. The vice president's deception goes to the issue of character – he launched a diversionary and factually inaccurate attack against Sen. Edwards in order to avoid answering serious questions about Halliburton's bilking of American taxpayers.
- After attacking Sen. Kerry's voting history, Vice President Cheney refused to defend his own legislative record. As Sen. Edwards noted, Vice President Cheney's legislative record is far away from mainstream values: "He was one of 10 to vote against Head Start, one of four to vote against banning plastic weapons that can pass through metal detectors. He voted against the Department of Education. He voted against funding for Meals on Wheels for seniors. He voted against a holiday for Martin Luther King. He voted against a resolution calling for the release of Nelson Mandela in South Africa." Cheney had no response.
Daily Talking Points is a product of the American Progress Action Fund.
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Daily Talking Points is a product of the American Progress Action Fund. |
