Matthew Duss on Neoconservatives and National Security

What are we seeing in the latest arguments from neoconservatives?

What we're seeing in the latest arguments from the neoconservatives is an attempt to rehabilitate the global war on terror that was undertaken by George W. Bush and Dick Cheney right after 9/11. This idea that if you're not with us, you're against us, the idea that the U.S. can just go about the world imposing its will on other countries unbound by any kind of international rules. And this, even George W. Bush himself had moved away from these ideas toward the end of his administration understanding how disastrous they had been for U.S. security--the war in Iraq is the most important and obvious example. The effects on U.S. security of that war have been terrible and we're going to be dealing with them for decades to come. But they're going after President Obama now claiming that he's not fighting the war as he should, he's not approaching this as a war, and this is wrong in a couple of ways. First of all, President Obama has taken the war to the terrorists where they actually are, in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area where Al-Qaeda continues to be held up; the strikes on terrorist leadership--there have been more of those than in the entire Bush administration. But at the same time he's also brought the U.S.'s conflict with Al-Qaeda back within the bounds of the rule of law, which is very, very important as we go about trying to strengthen and promote our values in the world.

How does Liz Cheney fit into all of this?

Since the end of the Bush presidency, Liz Cheney has been one of the most vocal defenders of the policies of her father, Dick Cheney, who has bragged that he was a supporter of waterboarding. He's someone who really exemplifies the essence of the global war on terror, the idea that the U.S. can just go about the world unbound by any sorts of rules and do whatever it wants in declaring a national security emergency. Liz Cheney has drawn closer to the neoconservatives. She and Bill Kristol have founded Keep America Safe, an organization that continually attacks the Obama administration and tries to scare the American people into believing Osama Bin Laden is hiding under their bed. There are questions as to what she has in mind for her future. It seems pretty clear that she has a political future in mind for herself, but we'll have to wait and see.

Where do you see the future of the Cheney ideology?

The future of the Cheney ideology will be determined by the American people. In 2008, that ideology was resoundingly rejected by the American people when they voted in Barack Obama who promised a break from those policies; who promised to bring the United States back under the rule of law in its conflict with Al-Qaeda; who has promised to honor U.S. multilateral commitments and try to work more effectively with America's partners around the world to deal with common national security problems. However it's clear that Liz Cheney, Dick Cheney, Bill Kristol and other elements of the neoconservative faction are continuing to try to win this argument, this political argument by scaring the American people, by making false arguments against the Obama administration. So the question is whether the American people will buy it.