Cheney blithely dismissed Tim Russert when the host asked what would happen if “we’re not treated as liberators but as conquerors.” Would the American people be “prepared for a long, costly and bloody battle with significant American casualties?”

Not to worry, said Cheney: “I don’t think it’s likely to unfold that way, Tim, because I really do believe we will be greeted as liberators.” Cheney dismissed Gen. Eric Shinseki’s view of how many troops an occupation would require: “To suggest that we need several hundred thousand troops there after military operations cease, after the conflict ends, I don’t think is accurate. I think that’s an overstatement.” Have we forgotten this, too?

E. J. Dionne Jr.: 09-10-2004