Cheney: I don’t know what makes Obama tick

Former Vice President Dick Cheney (R) said on Sunday that he has not figured out what motivates President Obama.

{mosads}“I’ve tried for a long time, John, to understand what makes him tick, and frankly, I don’t know,” Cheney told host John Catsimatidis on AM 970’s “The Cats Roundtable” in New York.

Cheney said he was particularly mystified by Obama’s counterterrorism strategy in the Middle East.

The former vice president cited U.S.-led coalition airstrikes against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) there as one example of what he called confusing logic.

“I don’t think he really wants to be there,” Cheney said.

“Obama has placed pretty severe limits on what our air guys can do,” he said. “It’s half a loaf, it’s pin-pricks. It’s not a very effective military operation at this point.”

Obama’s unclear direction, Cheney argued, had helped ISIS make significant gains in Iraq following the withdrawal of U.S. ground troops there.

“It’s a circus, and it’s not getting any better,” he said. “The situation in Iraq is a mess, obviously.”

Cheney also criticized some of Obama’s potential replacements.

He said that Democrat Hillary Clinton, for example, had brushed off scandal too often for the Oval Office.

“I must say I am surprised there isn’t more opposition to her within the Democratic Party,” Cheney said. “I think there’s serious problems there that need to be investigated.”

Cheney said recent concerns over the Clintons’ charitable foundation and their public speaking profits might make her too much of a liability for the White House.

“If I was a Democratic voter, I would be looking for new talent,” he said.

Cheney also criticized Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a GOP 2016 contender, for his attacks on the National Security Agency.

“I disagree with Rand Paul on that,” Cheney said of Paul’s opposition to the NSA and its bulk, warrantless collection of individuals’ phone records.

“Nobody yet has been able to point out a single instance where the NSA has abused that power and that authority,” he said.

“Nobody’s rights have been violated,” he added. “It just hasn’t happened.”