Toward the end of President Obama's
speech to the United Nations on Wednesday—a speech that made the case for U.S.-led military action against ISIS and other "terrorists in Syria and Iraq"—he challenged America's critics to recognize that despite our imperfections, we are engaged in a constant struggle to become more perfect:
I realize that America’s critics will be quick to point out that at times we too have failed to live up to our ideals; that America has plenty of problems within our own borders. This is true. In a summer marked by instability in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, I know the world also took notice of the small American city of Ferguson, Missouri – where a young man was killed, and a community was divided. So yes, we have our own racial and ethnic tensions. And like every country, we continually wrestle with how to reconcile the vast changes wrought by globalization and greater diversity with the traditions that we hold dear.
But we welcome the scrutiny of the world – because what you see in America is a country that has steadily worked to address our problems and make our union more perfect. America is not the same as it was 100 years ago, 50 years ago, or even a decade ago. Because we fight for our ideals, and are willing to criticize ourselves when we fall short. Because we hold our leaders accountable, and insist on a free press and independent judiciary. Because we address our differences in the open space of democracy – with respect for the rule of law; with a place for people of every race and religion; and with an unyielding belief in the ability of individual men and women to change their communities and countries for the better.
Not only did the president say that the United States is constantly striving to become better, he said that our fundamental belief in democracy and freedom is the reason we succeed. And with all due respect to the president, it's not a controversial or novel argument—even Ronald Reagan
acknowledged that the civil rights movement began because "America's democracy was not perfect," and that it succeeded in changing the country for the better because "America's conscience was a powerful force for reform."
Nonetheless, Dick Cheney is outraged at President Obama:
Dick Cheney says it’s “outrageous” that President Barack Obama mentioned the summer’s unrest in Ferguson, Mo., while speaking about ISIL during a speech at the United Nations.
“I was stunned,” the former vice president said on Wednesday during an interview on Fox News’ “Hannity.”
Apparently, Cheney interpreted the president's remarks as saying that there was a "moral equivalence" between ISIS beheadings and the shooting death of Michael Brown. That doesn't even bear a passing resemblance to the message the president was sending (last I checked, Tomahawk missiles weren't flying toward the Ferguson police headquarters), but it's no surprise that Cheney would misinterpret as such. After all, he's spent most of the last 15 years focused 100 percent on getting as much wrong as he possibly can.
