Cheney: Obama dithering on Afghan strategy

WASHINGTON, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney said President Barack Obama is "dithering" about a troop surge in Afghanistan, endangering forces already deployed.

Cheney said Obama "seems afraid to make a decision and (is) unable to provide his commander on the ground with the troops he needs to complete his mission" since he announced his Afghan strategy in March, The Hill reported.

Cheney, a vocal critic of the Obama administration, made the remarks Wednesday during a speech at the Center for Security Policy in Washington.

"It's time for President Obama to make good on his promise," Cheney said. "The White House must stop dithering while America's armed forces are in danger."

Obama is considering recommendations by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of troops in Afghanistan, that as many as 40,000 more troops are needed in the country to forestall a failed mission.

On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs fired back at Cheney, saying, "What Vice President Cheney calls 'dithering,' President Obama calls his solemn responsibility to the men and women in uniform and to the American public."

Gibbs said he thought it was interesting that Cheney was "blaming us for something that he didn't see fit to do over, best I can tell, seven years of a war in Afghanistan."