Republicans criticize Obama’s new approach on fighting terrorism

WASHINGTON — Republicans hammered President Obama on Sunday for what they described as a retreat in the war against terrorism at a time when they said the world’s crises demand a more aggressive, vigilant posture from the United States.

In a speech Thursday at the National Defense University in Washington, Obama said he would narrow the use of drone attacks against suspected terrorists and seek to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said on Fox News on Sunday that he had “never been more worried about national security” and called the president “tone deaf” on the issue.

“I see a big difference between the president saying the war’s at an end and whether or not you’ve won the war,” said Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.). “We have still tremendous threats out there, that are building — not declining, building — and to not recognize that, I think, is dangerous in the long run and dangerous for the world.”

Democrats such as Sen. Charles Schumer of New York defended the President’s anti-terrorism policy, contending that the revised approach would address concerns about the lack of transparency in the deployment of drones without sacrificing security.

“There are new types of threats that we have to be vigilant about. But he said, under this long-term war on terror, where small groups of individuals can hurt us, we need some rules,” Schumer said. “We need some rules, we need some transparency, so American citizens and the citizens of the world know we’re not just going willy-nilly. Having transparency, having rules and engaging other activities other than military to help curb the war on terror — diplomacy, economic sanctions and things like that — is going to be useful as well.”

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has bucked his party’s support of wide-ranging drone strikes, in March leading a filibuster in the Senate over concerns that the government could kill U.S. citizens with drone strikes without giving them due process.

On ABC’s “This Week,” Paul said that the president’s pivot on drone strikes did not satisfy his qualms. “Due process to most of us is a court of law. It’s a trial by a jury,” Paul said. “And right now their process is him looking at some flashcards and a PowerPoint presentation on ‘Terror Tuesdays’ in the White House. For a lot of us, that’s not really due process.”

Guests on the Sunday talk shows spoke of the various scandals that buffeted the Obama administration this week, including the Internal Revenue Service’s greater scrutiny of conservative nonprofits and the Justice Department’s wiretapping of journalists to whom administration officials had leaked national security information. The only issue that seemed to escape partisanship on the Sunday shows was sexual assault in the military, after disturbing news in recent weeks from all branches of the armed forces. Guests on the talk shows from both parties commended Obama for bringing up the issue at the Naval Academy graduation last week and agreed that strong steps needed to be taken against offenders.