by Mark Silva
With the White House asserting executive privilege in its refusal to let aides testify in the congressional investigation of the firings of federal prosecutors, Vice President Dick Cheney’s office has suggested that he is not actually a member of the executive branch in explaining his refusal to disclose the amount of his office’s classification or declassification of material.
President Bush updated an executive order in 2003 ordering executive branch agencies to make that annual accounting of their volume of classification and declassification of records to the National Archives – and several of Bush’s own offices, including the Office of Management and Budget do so. But Cheney’s office has refused to make that annual accounting since 2003 – a practice first reported by the Tribune last year.
“Well, the job of the vice president is an interesting one, because you've got a foot in both the executive and the legislative branch,’’ Cheney said in an interview with CBS Radio today.
“Obviously, I've got an office in the West Wing of the White House, I'm an advisor of the president, I sit as a member of the National Security Council,’’ Cheney said. “At the same time, under the Constitution, I have legislative responsibilities.
“I'm actually paid by the Senate, not by the executive,’’ he said. “I sit as the president of the Senate, as the presiding officer in the Senate. I cast tie-breaking votes in the Senate. So the vice president is kind of a unique creature, if you will, in that you've got a foot in both branches.''
The most recent report of the Information Security Oversight Office at the National Archives, noting an overall decrease in the volume of material classified by agencies in 2006 -- with the Department of Defense accounting for a big share of the decline -- noted in another footnote to its May 31 report to the president that the Office of Vice President again had not reported in. The president's executive order required a report on all this activity at least once a year. Each year, the no-show OVP is footnoted.
Vice President Cheney and wife Lynne Monday, July 30, 2007 at ribbon cutting for the new George Washington University cardiovascular center named for them. AP Photo/White House by David Bohrer.
Yet Cheney is principally a part of the executive branch, is he not?
“Well, I suppose you could argue it either way,’’ Cheney said. “The fact is I do work in both branches. Under the Constitution, I'm assigned responsibilities in the legislative branch. Then the president obviously gives me responsibilities in the executive branch. And I perform both those functions, although I think it would be fair to say I spend more time on executive matters than legislative matters.’’
Well, now that that's cleared up, how about that procedure he underwent on Saturday for replacement of the defibrillator which he has worn in his chest for six years because the battery was running down?
“I feel good,’’ Cheney said. “The procedure went fine. Six years ago was when they first implanted this -- what do they call it -- a cardio defibrillator. It's a combination pacemaker or defibrillator that is geared to restart my heart if something should happen to it or it should slow down too much. It's great technology, it's never gone off. But over six years, gradually the battery runs down and needs to be replaced. So we went in on Saturday and they just put in a brand new unit.’’
Asked about a cardiologist who suggests it’s “a good sign’’ when a patient outlasts the battery in his defibrillator, Cheney said:
“Well, yes, that's certainly better than the alternative.’’
Asked if he wants Att’y Gen. Alberto Gonzales to keep fighting to keep his job, Cheney said: “I do. I'm a big fan of Al's.
“I'm not going to get into the specifics’’ of testimony that Gonzales has given to Congress, the vice president said. “I think Al has done a good job under difficult circumstances. The debate between he and the Senate is something they're going to have to resolve. But I think he has testified truthfully.’’
What about Republicans such as Sen. Arlen Specter and Rep. Chris Shays who say that Gonzales’ credulity has been damaged?
“Well, I don't agree with them,’’ Cheney said.
But can Gonzales remain in office if the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Pat Leahy, says he doesn’t trust him?
“I've had my differences with Pat Leahy,’’ Cheney said of the Democratic chairman. “I think the key is whether or not he has the confidence of the president, and he clearly does.’’
Cheney, who said he has seen his former chief of staff, “Scooter’’ Libby, “on a number of social occasions,’’ was asked if President Bush had given Libby “enough’’ consideration in the commutation of his prison sentence for obstruction of justice and perjury in the investigation of the leak of a CIA agent’s identity.
“I thought the president handled it right. I supported his decision,’’ said Cheney, who said he disagreed with the guilty verdict that a federal jury had reached in Libby’s trial – though the president had said he respects the verdict but found the sentence harsh and excessive. “You asked me if I disagreed with the verdict,’’ Cheney said on this point, “and I did.’’
Mark Knoller of CBS Radio asked about the war as well.
“I think it's absolutely essential that we succeed in Iraq,’’ Cheney said. “And the commitment we have made is to complete the mission, in effect, to get the job done, to establish security and to give the Iraqis an opportunity to be able to set up a functioning government -- which they've done -- and to be able to deal with the security situation themselves, which they're on their way of doing.
What about a draft report that suggests the U.S. will have to remain there at least through 2009, does that sound right?
“I don't want to make those judgments,’’ he said. “I think those really turn more on the kind of advice we get from the military. We're all waiting to see what Gen. Petraeus produces by way of his report back, in September. But in terms of achieving our objectives, I think it's very important that the United States not withdraw from Iraq, not adopt a posture of some of our friends on the other side of the aisle who are calling, in effect, for accepting retreat as the outcome. .. That would be totally inappropriate. ‘’
How long might the ‘’surge’’ last then?
“Well, that depends on how long it has to last,’’ he said. “It's set up so that it kicked in, really, this summer. We began to deploy the additional troops in the spring; the final deployment of additional troops occurred in late June, early July. And so the surge right now is at its maximum peak. How long that continues will be a decision the President will make based on advice he gets from Gen. Petraeus.’’
Cheney was asked if the strategy in Iraq might affect the Republican Party’s bid to regain control of Congress and retain control of the White House in 2008.
“It may well,’’ Cheney said. “I can't speculate on that. I think the fact is that we can succeed in Iraq, that the objective is worthwhile, and that ultimately I think history will recognize that.’’
He was asked about the Democratic presidential campaign debate between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in which Obama has accused Clinton of being ‘’Bush-Cheney lite.’’
“I was’’ amused, he said with a laugh. “I wasn't quite sure -- I didn't think that was meant to be a compliment, but it was an interesting -- interesting line of attack….
“I watch with great interest on both sides, both Republicans and Democrats,’’ he said. “As somebody who has participated in that process now for the better part of 40 years, I am always fascinated by it. Not involved this time, but fascinated.’’
Cheney also was asked about that two hours he spent as acting president a couple of weeks ago, when Bush underwent a colonoscopy at Camp David. Cheney, who spent the time at his weekend home on the eastern shore of Maryland, said he took no official action during the time he held the football.
“No, I basically wrote a letter to my grandkids,’’ Cheney said. “As acting president… A souvenir for them to have down the road some day.’’
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Comments
More convoluted logic from cheney.
"I belong to two branches of the government so I am not required to comply with the rules of either."
Good repug thinking there.
Posted by: Bill H | July 30, 2007 5:39 PM
Two left feet?
Posted by: bill r. | July 30, 2007 5:45 PM
It's hard to believe he's sticking to that lame story. Cheney has told us some whoppers (the "last throes" quote comes to mind), but this is just plain stupid. He's telling us the vice-president's office has blanket executive priviledge as part of the White House, but doesn't have to follow the president's executive orders because he breaks tie votes in the legislature? They should have replaced the battery in his head. Even his hunting buddy Scalia should have trouble swallowing a whopper like that. That sounds like contempt of Congress (and contempt for every American who ever took a social studies class) to me. Time for Congress to crack open the impeachment instruction manual.
Posted by: Tom O | July 30, 2007 5:51 PM
How many lies can you tell in one interview?
Has Cheney even read the Constitution?
Posted by: athena | July 30, 2007 5:55 PM
One of the more bizarre aspects of this story is that Dubya hasn't weighed in on it.
What kind of lap dog of a president sits idly by while his veep carves out his only little non-existent piece of the Constitution?
Posted by: Doug Zook | July 30, 2007 6:01 PM
Huh???
Posted by: Logic Prisoner | July 30, 2007 6:07 PM
Why can't an interviewer ask him about his office's potentially treasonous actions in the outing of a covert CIA officer?
It's a very simple question. According to Patrick Fitzgerald, "there is a cloud over the vice president's ofice". Why isn't he hounded by this?
Posted by: danny | July 30, 2007 6:26 PM
athena,
Cheney hasn't read the Constitution but he has used it for toilet paper and he's done this while his fellow Republican Party members have stood on sidelines cheerleading for him.
Posted by: John E | July 30, 2007 7:31 PM
How does he juggle all that with his real job working for OPEC?
Posted by: Kenny Bunkport | July 30, 2007 7:37 PM
"THE DARKEN DOORS OF THE WHITE HOUSE"
It's that good ol "Culture of Corruption" speech by the "Pioneer" of the"K Street Project" Circumventing the Law by claiming absence of knowledge.
What no Sand Bowling this trip? Had second thoughts about the Patients Bill of Rights while under "Assestation" with his doctor. Having lunch with David Safavian about some old procurement ideas.
I think he just waiting for Al Gore to apologize for saying the President broke the Law.
Otherwise, Gonzales will "Cut and Run" about all that eaves dropping and Culture of Corruption.
Dick Cheney knows the failures of Gonzales will be the Legacy of his total disregard and disrespect to Congress and the whole Legislative Process.
Like sand in the hour glass. Time will tell.
Posted by: Roger Morris | July 30, 2007 7:39 PM
When President Clinton shuffles information off to her OVP and claims the republitards can't see it, the republicrites will have a cow. I hope she uses olde chainey quotes and arguments and throws them back at the repukelicans. It'll make them absolutely nuts. This chainsaw guy is dangerous, but until this mis-administration leaves the orifice of the president, the wingnuts here will never recognize it.
Posted by: snitramc | July 30, 2007 7:40 PM
snitramc,
This is the curious thing about all the outrageous behavior of this administration, and the relative non-response by Republicans in Congress. The Republics act as if they really thought they would have a permanent majority in Congress and occupancy of the WH. Why else would they seed more power to the next Democratic President, and make their minority rights in Congress less potent? Maybe Bush plans to deliver Armageddon to the religious right before he leaves office, so it will be a moot point.
Posted by: dt | July 30, 2007 8:22 PM
The only way Cheney will be impeached is if the Democrats grow a spine. However, they have already said they wouldn't pursue impeachment for either the president or vice-president after they won the majority in November 2006. All of us must live with this until 2009. Too bad we don't have more Ron Pauls and Mike Gravels out there to speak for us.
Posted by: lochnessmonster | July 30, 2007 8:58 PM
Feet planted in two branches of power, or two flaming bags of ☁ ?!
Posted by: C.Morris | July 30, 2007 9:18 PM
what wil it take for ppl to wake up?? his tie-breaking vote in the senate means the vice president isn't part of the executive branch?? wtf is this? this from the 'CEO' administration... i've never been a vice-president, but i'm pretty sure all of the VPs i've met considered themselves executives...
this is a dangerous precedent more for the lack of desperate resistance to it than for any other reason...
i hope the democrats hammer and hammer away at this as an object of ridicule... there has to be a wealth of 'one-liners' that could come from this...
Posted by: seth | July 30, 2007 9:35 PM
An honest question:
Is this how a leader of men behaves?
-or-
Are these the actions of a mere scoundrel?
Posted by: Karl B. | July 30, 2007 9:38 PM
Speaking of lawless Republicans, I see the Feds have just raided the Alaska home of (R) Ted Stevens.
Teddy better call W. at the 1-800-"Pardon a Crooked Republican Hotline" number in the White House, STAT!
Posted by: John E | July 30, 2007 10:19 PM
The vice president is above the law; but the IRS is above the vice president - just ask Spiro Agnew.
Posted by: Bud McFarlin | July 30, 2007 10:21 PM
Weren't there any better cutters available for the opening of the cardiology center?
Posted by: Kenny Bunkport | July 30, 2007 10:54 PM
Can we impeach him now?
I mean, isn't the guy more or less sleazily claiming that the Constitution doesn't apply to him because he says he can have it both ways and no way at the same time?
Does he have to call all the major networks, schedule a press conference during prime-time, and literally burn the original constitution while chanting "Heil Cheney! Death to America!" before we can contemplate impeachment here?
Posted by: david k | July 30, 2007 11:13 PM
Dick Cheney is a disgrace to this country. He'll go down in history as the worst VP.
Posted by: Enrique | July 30, 2007 11:27 PM
Alternate caption:
"It cost me the six billion that fell off a truck in Iraq, but how else was I going to get my name on something?
Posted by: dt | July 30, 2007 11:55 PM
Silva,
Nice Headline!
Every lefty loon is on this one...WAIT!...Any more Cities or Townships across America that want to impeach Bush/Cheney?
You brought up [80] of the hundreds of thousands across America that did?
Hmmmmm?
Another...GOOD(fair and balanced) REPORT.....
Keep on,keeping on...
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | July 31, 2007 1:02 AM
Paul O.,
The headline came from a quote from Darth himself.
It sure isn't found in the Constitution.
It'll be fun to hear the '08 veep candidates respond to the question of which branch (if any) of the three specified in the Constitution they belong to. The Republican veep candidate will be the more fun as they twist and squirm knowing that Darth has made them have to answer a question never before posed in the 230 year history of our republic.
Posted by: Doug Zook | July 31, 2007 8:31 AM
Satancheney is a farce.
Satancheney is so outlandishly evil that decent people (not you, Paulo), are afraid to stand up to it. Even his own party of vice, secrecy, corruption, secrecy, special favors, secrecy, bigotry and hatred, secrecy, waste (now, just WHERE is that missing $8 billion? I'll be it's secretly in Wyoming!) secretly - of course, mismanagement, secrecy, paid secrect propagandists and their good friends secretlt cocaine addicted, gay but still antigay, crack-smoking-hooker-poker televangelists and secrect KKKarl Rovers can't stand the light of day arround it. Nope, secret Satancheney has done a great job of setting up his secret kingdom on earth right in secret view of everyone. Nice job, Paulo and friends. You've done his bidding and will be secrectly rewarded. Your grandchildren will inherit a scorched earth - so today you can secretly have fun. Satancheney's grandchildren will inherit the earth. Ours will inheret "scorched." Once again, Paulo and friends, Satanchency had done "a heck-of-a-job." Right?
How far Right does one have to get before it's wrong?
Posted by: snalg | July 31, 2007 8:45 AM
No posts from RNC Bruce or John D. How odd.
Posted by: Anonymous | July 31, 2007 9:21 AM
Paulo,
It took you till one in the morning to come up with that response. Attacking the messenger doesn't respond to the message. Maybe after some rest you can come up with a better jab.
Good luck.
Posted by: kg123 | July 31, 2007 9:56 AM
What dark force is keeping this man alive?
Posted by: jethro | July 31, 2007 10:08 AM
Cheney's best friends are the Saudi's. And we all know that 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers were Saudi. Bin Laden is also Saudi.
Smarmy chickenhawk Cheney- drunk driving convictions and 5 deferrments (he had better things to do). And Sean Hannity considers him a great American.
Posted by: Doug R. | July 31, 2007 10:20 AM
Of all the things to say about Alberto Gonzales -- "I'm a big fan of Al's." Wow. Maybe Gonzo can get a job at Halibuton one day. That would be funny if there wasn't so much truth to it.
Posted by: kb | July 31, 2007 10:53 AM
It'll be fun to hear the '08 veep candidates respond to the question of which branch (if any) of the three specified in the Constitution they belong to. The Republican veep candidate will be the more fun as they twist and squirm knowing that Darth has made them have to answer a question never before posed in the 230 year history of our republic.
Posted by: Doug Zook | July 31, 2007 8:31 AM
LOL! These folks really have broken the mold.
Posted by: a blinkin | July 31, 2007 12:23 PM
It’s just too bad that when they replaced that battery on that hart zapper installed in him, they didn’t have one with a remote control so someone could zap him every time lied about something. (“ZAP” wrong answer Dickey)
Posted by: Rory M | July 31, 2007 1:03 PM
Alternate Caption;
'I smell burning hair...'
Posted by: C.Morris | July 31, 2007 1:37 PM
Boy the posters here are rewriting the Daily Kos, MoveOn.org Bush Cheney hate mongering script.It doesn't take much intelligence to hate rant on Bush and Cheney it furthers George Soros and Clinton War room spins.
The Vice President has been maligned so long now that a poster on Arianna Huffington's blog wants his heart to explode. Talk about hate and vitriol that's it right there.
Cheney is an elected official just like Al Gore was. Elected officials do not serve at the pleasure of the President like cabinet members and all other policy making bureaucrats do. He is free to use his judgement on executive orders he is exempt by election to the office. You have let your hate consume your logic.
Let's focus, your position seems to be Democrats and liberals good--Republicans and conservatives bad. What partisan rants! Jerry White, Springfield, IL
Posted by: Jerry White | July 31, 2007 4:33 PM
JerryWhite - a few quotes from wingnuts that don't hate..
"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war. And this is war." Mann Coulter
"With all due respect to those dear people, my friend, God Almighty does not hear the prayer of a Jew." Bailey Smith
"Don't use the word 'gay' unless it's an acronym for 'Got Aids Yet'" Bob Dornan
"If you got to castrate your miserable self with a piece of rusty barb wire, do it."
"Hear the word of the LORD, America, fag-enablers are worse than the fags themselves, and will be punished in the everlasting lake of fire!"
"You telling these miserable, Hell-bound, bath house-wallowing, anal-copulating fags that God loves them!? You have bats in the belfry!"
"American Veterans are to blame for the fag takeover of this nation. They have the power in their political lobby to influence the zeitgeist, get the fags out of the military, and back in the closet where they belong!"
"Not only is homosexuality a sin, but anyone who supports fags is just as guilty as they are. You are both worthy of death."
All from PhredPhelpz
"This is God's world, not Satan's. Christians are the lawful heirs, not non-Christians." Gary North
"AIDS is a racial disease of Jews and Niggers, and fortunately it is wiping out the queers. I guess God hates queers for several reasons. There is one big reason to be against queers and that is because every time some white boy is seduced by a queer into becoming a queer, means his white bloodline has run out." J.B. STONER
"Today's children... They're damned. They're gone." James Dobson
"AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals."
"If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being."
Both from Jerry Fell-well
"Nobody has the right to worship on this planet any other God than Jehovah. And therefore the state does not have the responsibility to defend anybody's pseudo-right to worship an idol." Joseph Morecraft
“George Bush was not elected by a majority of the voters in the United States, he was appointed by God.” Lt. Gen. William Boykin
"Our culture is superior. Our culture is superior because our religion is Christianity and that is the truth that makes men free."
"There were no politics to polarize us then, to magnify every slight. The "negroes" of Washington had their public schools, restaurants, bars, movie houses, playgrounds and churches; and we had ours."
"Rail as they will about 'discrimination,' women are simply not endowed by nature with the same measures of single-minded ambition and the will to succeed in the fiercely competitive world of Western capitalism."
All from Pat Buchanan
"You say you're supposed to be nice to the Episcopalians and the Presbyterians and the Methodists and this, that, and the other thing. Nonsense, I don't have to be nice to the spirit of the Antichrist."
Pat Robertson
Posted by: snitramc | July 31, 2007 6:37 PM