Monday, CNN ran a preview clip of an interview scheduled to air on Tuesday night’s broadcast of CNN’s “AC360,” in which former Vice President Dick Cheney said because of the unfettered rise of ISIS, “we could see another 9/11-style attack with much deadlier weapons.”
Cheney said, “Look at the record. We had a situation in which by the time we got through the surge in ’07 and ’08, President Bush made a courageous decision and correct decision that Iraq was in good shape when we left office. Barack Obama said as much. What happened basically was they failed to follow through. They withdrew as quickly as possible and left no stay-behind force there. They created a vacuum and the vacuum was filled by ISIS.”
He addedt that ISIS is “extraordinarily dangerous, partly because of their ability to recruit from the United States—people to become members of ISIS , to go to Syria, Iraq and so forth.”
“I think the danger of having those people return, having trained for example over there, or their ability to motivate people in the United States and elsewhere and other parts of the world to become ardent followers, if you will, of that ideology, and sacrifice themselves in the name of killing infidels, I think that possibility is increasing,” Cheney continued. “I think ISIS is a very dangerous indeed, especially if you think about the prospects of nuclear weapons being developed in the Middle East.”
“I think we could see another 9/11-style attack with much deadlier weapons. I worry if they use chemical or biological agents or nuclear weapons. They used airline tickets and box cutters on 9/11. That was a difficult, terrible day for us. Three thousand casualties. It will be a lot worse if they find deadlier weapons,” he added.
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