Obama, Cheney offer competing views on national security - CNN.com

(CNN) -- President Obama and former Vice President Dick Cheney offered competing views on how to keep America safe in back-to-back speeches Thursday.

Obama said his administration is trying to clean up "a mess" left behind by the Bush administration. He defended his plan to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba, his ban on torture, the release of Bush-era interrogation memos and his objection to the release of prisoner photos.

Cheney stood up for the Bush administration's security record, arguing that Obama has weakened the country's ability to combat al Qaeda and other extremists. He defended the use of enhanced interrogation techniques as a success that changed thousands of lives. He called the release of the Bush-era memos a reckless distraction and belittled Obama's decision to close Guantanamo "with little deliberation and no plan."

Obama, Cheney offer competing views on national security - CNN.com