Posted on 12/20/2005 9:54:39 AM PST by NormsRevenge
ABOARD AIR FORCE II - Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday vigorously defended the Bush administration's use of secret domestic spying and efforts to expand presidential powers, saying "it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years."
Talking to reporters aboard his government plane as he flew from Islamabad, Pakistan to Muscat, Oman on an overseas mission, Cheney said a contraction in the power of the presidency since the Vietnam and Watergate era must be reversed.
"I believe in a strong, robust executive authority and I think that the world we live in demands it. And to some extent, that we have an obligation as the administration to pass on the offices we hold to our successors in as good of shape as we found them," he said.
Cheney spoke from his plane's private cabin as he was making a trip aimed at boosting the United States' image abroad and its relationships with its war-on-terror partners. But after visiting Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, he was cutting his travels short, skipping planned stops in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to return to Washington to be on hand for session-ending Senate activity that could require his tie-breaking votes.
Cheney said he believes the American people support President Bush's terror-fighting strategy. "If there's a backlash pending," because of reports of National Security Agency surveillance of calls originating within the United States, he said, "I think the backlash is going to be against those who are suggesting somehow that we shouldn't take these steps to defend the country."
Cheney talked about terrorism and national security amid a burgeoning controversy at home over Bush's acknowledgment of a four-year-old administration program to eavesdrop — without court-approved warrants — on international calls and e-mails of Americans and others inside the United States with suspected ties to the terrorist network al-Qaida.
Some legal experts described the program as groundbreaking. And until the highly classified program was disclosed last week, those in Congress with concerns about the National Security Agency spying on Americans raised them only privately.
Since the program's existence was revealed, lawmakers from both parties have objected and begun discussing a congressional investigation. Cheney said the opposition is politically unwise.
"Either we're serious about fighting the war on terror or we're not," the vice president said. "The president and I believe very deeply that there is a hell of a threat."
The vice president also told reporters that in his view, presidential authority has been eroded since the 1970s through laws such as the War Powers Act and anti-impoundment laws.
"Watergate and a lot of the things around Watergate and Vietnam both during the '70s served, I think, to erode the authority I think the president needs to be effective, especially in the national security area," Cheney said. But he also said the administration has been able to restore some of "the legitimate authority of the presidency."
Cheney said the White House helped protect presidential power by fighting to keep secret the list of people who were a part of his 2001 energy task force. The task force's activities attracted complaints from environmentalists, who said they were shut out of discussions on developing a national energy policy while corporate interests were present. A protracted lawsuit ensued.
"I believe that the president is entitled and needs to have unfiltered advice in formulating policy," Cheney said. "He ought to be able to seek the opinion of anybody he wants to and that he should not have to reveal, for example, who he talked to that morning. That issue was litigated all the way up to the Supreme Court and we won."
Cheney said that "many people believe" the War Powers Act, enhancing the power of Congress to share in executive branch decision-making on war, is unconstitutional and said "it will be tested at some point. I am one of those who believe that was an infringement on the authority of the president."
Cheney noted he had served in the House for 10 years and said he has "enormous regard" for the legislative branch.
"But I do believe that especially in the day and age we live in, the nature of the threats of we face — and this is true during the Cold War as well as I think is true now — the president of the United States needs to have his constitutional powers unimpaired, if you will, in terms of the conduct of national security policy," the vice president said.
Cheney conceded that arguments over eavesdropping won't likely pass any time soon, saying, "It's an important subject."
"I would argue that the actions that we've taken there are totally appropriate and consistent with the constitutional authority of the president," he added.
"You know, it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years," Cheney said. "I think there's a temptation for people to sit around and say, 'Well, gee that was just a one-of affair, they didn't really mean it.' "
"The bottom line is we've been very active and very aggressively defending the nation and using the tools at our disposal to do that," he said.
U.S. Vice President Richard B. Cheney gives an interview after a tour of the 212th MASH unit, Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2005, in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan.Vice President Cheney is cutting short an overseas trip to head back to the United States to cast tie-breaking votes, if necessary, in the Senate.(AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson, Pool)
I see the lying DNC stooges at the AP are still pushing the fraudlent DNC talking points about the Law on this matter.
Wow. An AP photo that doesn't make it look like he's about to chew someone's head off like a Pex dispenser... Who woulda thunk?
Pez. PEZ dispenser.
Cheney is one I'd like in my Fox Hole...when it's necessary...he's 'bout as bad as it gets.
Ditto Megatori
Talking to reporters aboard his government plane as he flew from Islamabad, Pakistan to Muscat, Oman on an overseas mission, Cheney said a contraction in the power of the presidency since the Vietnam and Watergate era must be reversed. "I believe in a strong, robust executive authority and I think that the world we live in demands it. And to some extent, that we have an obligation as the administration to pass on the offices we hold to our successors in as good of shape as we found them," he said. WooHoo! Hitting Congress (McCain/Linds/Specter/Dems) and the peaceniks right between the eyes!
Cheney said he believes the American people support President Bush's terror-fighting strategy. "If there's a backlash pending," because of reports of National Security Agency surveillance of calls originating within the United States, he said, "I think the backlash is going to be against those who are suggesting somehow that we shouldn't take these steps to defend the country."
damn right. Libs on record supporting terrorist not be tortured, not be wire tapped, and not be fought. What a swell election platform.
"Either we're serious about fighting the war on terror or we're not," the vice president said. "The president and I believe very deeply that there is a hell of a threat."
I love the strength of the language to emphasis a crucial point.
"I believe that the president is entitled and needs to have unfiltered advice in formulating policy," Cheney said. "He ought to be able to seek the opinion of anybody he wants to and that he should not have to reveal, for example, who he talked to that morning. That issue was litigated all the way up to the Supreme Court and we won."
Another shot at Congress. LOL Keep 'em coming.
"But I do believe that especially in the day and age we live in, the nature of the threats of we face — and this is true during the Cold War as well as I think is true now — the president of the United States needs to have his constitutional powers unimpaired, if you will, in terms of the conduct of national security policy," the vice president said.
Especially since so many in the other branches are willing to surrender for sake of a "Global Test".
"You know, it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years," Cheney said. "I think there's a temptation for people to sit around and say, 'Well, gee that was just a one-of affair, they didn't really mean it.' " "The bottom line is we've been very active and very aggressively defending the nation and using the tools at our disposal to do that," he said.
The endangerment of our security due to these leaks is NOT good. However, there is a side benefit. The American people are hearing about tools that have been in place to keep us from attack. I think those that were thinking it a one time event are getting a cram session in just how wrong they were, and probably regaining a sense we are at war and the administration's efforts are why we've been safe, alongside of our troops and intelligence gathering services improving.
Me three...he da man!
"The allegation of Presidential law-breaking rests solely on the fact that Mr. Bush authorized wiretaps without first getting the approval of the court established under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. But no Administration then or since has ever conceded that that Act trumped a President's power to make exceptions to FISA if national security required it. FISA established a process by which certain wiretaps in the context of the Cold War could be approved, not a limit on what wiretaps could ever be allowed.
The courts have been explicit on this point, most recently in In Re: Sealed Case, the 2002 opinion by the special panel of appellate judges established to hear FISA appeals. In its per curiam opinion, the court noted that in a previous FISA case (U.S. v. Truong), a federal "court, as did all the other courts to have decided the issue [our emphasis], held that the President did have inherent authority to conduct warrantless searches to obtain foreign intelligence information." And further that "we take for granted that the President does have that authority and, assuming that is so, FISA could not encroach on the President's constitutional power."
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110007703
Cheney 2008
and if Condi does not return to CA to run against DiFi next year I would like to see her on the ticket with Cheney/Rice!
Excellent summation and analysis! Good job...:)
Cheney would be a superb president. The icing on the cake is that a President Cheney would make the heads of the liberals explode...:)
Unfortunately, he won't run, and if he did, the libs would go ballistic and use his physical state for a disqualifying condition...
Was it Ernest Hemengway who stated "I'd rather have a Marine, even a ruined one, when the chips are down than anyone else in the world." (not exact, but close quote)
I'd rather have a President Cheney, even a ruined one, anytime, over ANY liberal and most Republicans.
"Big Time" PING
Another "big time ping".
Thank God that we have President Bush and Vice-President Cheney in charge of this country and this fight.
Thank God President Bush demanded very great people to work in his administration such as Rumsfeld, Rice.
May God be with us and help us protect this country from its own internal enemies, the media, the democrats that seek to destroy this president and his administration.
Time WE relized that we have internal enemies that seek to use our fears of government in our lives to destroy this nation from within.
Think about how we should handle a media that reveals any national top secret information they can gleam onto endangering our families. Think about what we do about national security leaks for profit - book deals, circulation numbers, bribes.
If we don't - we will not long keep this nation. There is a lot of money and corruption out there and a very dangerous ignorance, and disregard of defending this nation.
I am really going to miss his debates with the Dem's VPs. I can only imagine how he would have crushed Gore and Kerry. I thought Dubya held his own with Gore but was excruciating to watch against Kerry. Cheney would have taken him to the woodshed.
Be Wise!!
Now I know why my post was pulled...
Mr. Chenney had to come home to SPANK some Republicans!
Disgusting! I hope that McShame & the rest get my letters stating I am Supporting ANY/ALL republican Challenges to heir re-election bids!!
That Mr. Chenney has to come back to reprimand a bunch of politicians.
DAB
Care to share?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.