Former Vice President Dick Cheney says Barack Obama may be the weakest president in his lifetime.
Reacting to Obama's speech Wednesday before West Point military graduates that received a cool reception even from the cadets, Cheney told Fox News Channel's
"Hannity" that the perception of the United States around the world is increasingly negative.
Urgent: Do You Approve Or Disapprove of President Obama's Job Performance? Vote Now in Urgent Poll
"But I think the main focus is on our president. He's a very, very weak president. Maybe the weakest, certainly in my lifetime," Cheney said.
Obama has in recent days given a timetable for taking all troops out of Afghanistan and said the United States should show restraint about entering future wars.
Critics, some in his own party, say such talk emboldens America's enemies, especially the al-Qaida-aligned Taliban in Afghanistan.
"We've got a problem of weakness," Cheny said. "It's centered right in the White House."
Noting that the 70th anniversary of D-Day is next week, Cheney said presidents since the end of World War II have had a general consensus that the world is safer with a strong U.S. military capability.
"I don't think Barack Obama believes that," Cheney said.
"I think it's the case that he hates to use military power. He doesn't believe it's ever justified," Cheney said. "And I think his speech today is going to put fear once again into the hearts of our allies, who don't believe they can count on the U.S."
Urgent: Do You Approve Or Disapprove of President Obama's Job Performance? Vote Now in Urgent Poll