Is Obama Keeping America Safe?
KING: Tanya Acker, is all this terror talk causing us to shift away from other things?</s>ACKER: Well, to some extent it is, because we're actually not talking a lot about how to fight terrorism. You know, we're listening to the folks like Dick Cheney level these extremely partisan criticisms, which I think that people on both sides suggest may be inappropriate and we should really be thinking about new tactics. But the interesting thing is, you know, when you hear folks like Cheney and those partisans, you know, part of the problem with that critique is that it suggests somehow that that administration, you know, was infallible, that they got the terror fight right when a lot of people know that they didn't. You know, they cut terror funding for New York City. They opposed overseas screening of cargo shipments, even after they said, you know, let this Dubai company run six U.S. ports. So the notion that they're infallible is what I think is really rubbing some people the wrong way right now.</s>KING: Andrea, if this is a war on terrorism, is it wrong to criticize the commander-in-chief?</s>TANTAROS: No, absolutely not. And Democrats didn't seem to have a problem with it when George Bush was in office. So I guess if it's good for the donkey, it's also good for the elephant. I mean, we absolutely need to be looking look at strategies going forward. And I hope the administration starts to look at this as priority number one. But, Larry, given the fact that over the last year, that a majority of the American people believed that the economy should be issue number one yet Democrats continued to focus on health care, tells me that they're still going to pursue other issues, like climate change, immigration, card check, when they should be focusing on this as their number one priority when they go back to Washington.</s>BEINART: But, you know, Larry, this is</s>KING: Peter -- Peter, hold up. Peter, isn't the economy and health care intertwined in a sense?</s>BEINART: Well, I think they are. And, also, the economy and the health care happen to be massive of issues for tens of millions of Americans who don't have jobs and who don't have health care. And climate change also happens to be a massive peril threatening the world. Of course terrorism is a significant issue. But, you know, what you tend to find with Dick Cheney and -- and -- and other -- other Republicans is they -- they make terrorism seem as if it's the only threat that America faces. Let's -- let's put this in perspective. This was a much smaller attack then the one that was attempted on 9/11 -- and it failed. And I think what it -- everyone, after 9/11, thought that the -- that Al Qaeda would have much bigger attacks that were 9/11 plus, plus, plus. It turns out they can't even execute, eight years later, a 9/11 minus. Yes, terrorism is a threat, but we don't need to be hysterical about it.</s>KING: Andrea, were you laughing?</s>TANTAROS: Unbelievable that we shouldn't be hysterical about it when the foreign minister of Yemen...</s>BEINART: Yes, we shouldn't be hysterical about it.</s>TANTAROS: When -- when -- when the foreign minister of Yemen -- yes, until one of your family members is on a plane. When the foreign minister...</s>BEINART: Actually, no, ma'am...</s>TANTAROS: ...of Yemen...</s>BEINART: ...I have close friends who died from terrorism...</s>TANTAROS: When the...</s>BEINART: ...so I don't need a lecture about it from you.</s>TANTAROS: When the...</s>BEINART: Thank you very much.</s>TANTAROS: As -- as do I. But when the foreign minister of Yemen comes out and says that there are hundreds of more men plotting attacks in Yemen on U.S. soil and we've decided to lawyer this guy up, that we've captured, and not try and get as much information from him about saving the lives of Americans and preventing future attacks, well, that's just plain stupid.</s>BEINART: No, no. That's called...</s>BEINART: ...that's called having...</s>BEINART: That's called having a Constitution and believing in due process, which is what makes us different from them.</s>TANTAROS: You can still get information...</s>KING: And Tanya...</s>ACKER: And -- and -- and but...</s>TANTAROS: ...with due process.</s>ACKER: You know, but -- but see...</s>KING: Hold it.</s>ACKER: ...the interesting thing is, because what Andrea is doing right now is what you're seeing happen on the right more generally. They're really suggesting that we've got to make this false choice between our Constitution and our values and being safe. And that's just not true. We have tried terrorists in the United States soil before. We tried and convicted Ramzi Yousef here. We tried and convicted Timothy McVeigh. We tried and convicted Richard Reid. So now, you know, you're hearing these folks suggest, oh, well, you know, if you believe in the Constitution, you don't believe in safety, like that's just false. That's a false price...</s>TANTAROS: Tanya, I think...</s>ACKER: ...that Americans don't have to pay.</s>KING: Ron...</s>TANTAROS: I think that a majority of Americans don't give a fig about the rights of a radical Islamic extremist that we had...</s>ACKER: I care. No, I think a majority of Americans...</s>BEINART: Well, then...</s>ACKER: ...care about...</s>BEINART: Then they're...</s>ACKER: ...the Constitution.</s>BEINART: Then they're wrong.</s>ACKER: I think they care about the Constitution.</s>KING: All right, Ron, you want to get in on this?</s>TANTAROS: I think they care about their lives and their families</s>PAUL: Well, how does everybody...</s>KING: Ron?</s>PAUL: How does -- how is everybody able to convict? I mean in this country, it used to be that you were suspects and, you know, you had a -- had a -- had a trial. But now, the -- the idea -- she's advocating torture. Can you imagine how much harm those torture pictures did to us? Boy, I am absolutely positive that there was a great deal of harm done in the Muslim world to radicalize thousands because that was the image of America. From the little bit of information they might have gotten by waterboarding and undermining the goodness of America that we are now the torturers of the world. Now we -- both parties accept the Bush Doctrine that you have preventive war and you go out and you start wars and march around and attack countries and torture people. That -- this is not what America is all about. This is what we have to change. We were supposed to have some change, but unfortunately, we're maintaining the status quo. And we have to address the subject of the Bush Doctrine of preventive war, because if we continue to do that, we will be bankrupt our country. This costs a lot of money.</s>KING: All right, let me get a...</s>PAUL: And it is related to health care...</s>KING: Let me get a...</s>PAUL: When you put a trillion dollars overseas, there's a trillion dollars less here to help people at home.</s>KING: Let me get a break. We'll talk more about the president's return right after this.