Cheney's "peace" trip to Middle East prepares new wars

In the course of an extended interview with Cheney conducted in Oman, Martha Raddatz of ABC News noted, speaking of the Iraq war, “Two-thirds of Americans say it’s not worth fighting, and they’re looking at the value gain versus the cost in American lives, certainly, and Iraqi lives.”

The vice president replied, “So?”

Raddatz continued, “So—you don’t care what the American people think?” Cheney responded, “No, I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls.”

These opinion polls have indicated massive opposition to the war within the US population, without significant fluctuation, for the past three years. The Republican Party lost control of Congress in 2006 largely because of this opposition. Cheney, an authoritarian politician, brushes all that aside.

Raddatz also noted that she had spoken with US troops Tuesday at the Balad air base in Iraq during a reception for Cheney. She explained that she had “asked people who they were supporting for president. Several said Barack Obama. I said, but he wants to get out of Iraq right away. And they said, that’s okay with me. These are the troops that you addressed yesterday themselves.”