“Do you support Mitt Romney like Cheney?”
With all the vitriol about Romney around here, the support for Liz Cheney surprises me. Wouldn’t we have to assume she is in line with Romney positions? She said she was.
And her husband, Phil Perry, LOBBYIST is a big problem. He was a big problem as head of DHS’s legal arm. People are treating these ‘upcoming’ gop stars with their heads in the sand. Why are they so reluctant to find out what their ‘stars’ have been up to. The right is as bad as the left in ignoring the warts of their idols. Why is everyone so afraid to actually vet these people. I’d rather know now the problems with them instead of being in shock after they do their damage.
[snip]LIZ CHENEY, ROMNEY SENIOR FOREIGN POLICY ADVISER: Well, it’s great to be here. Thanks, John. I think that clearly, Gov. Romney, when you look across the whole range of issues and challenges our next president is going to have to face, is the one best suited to face those challenges. He has got a very clear record on issues like cutting taxes. Sen. McCain also voted against the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003, for example, in addition to the list you mentioned before.....As I looked at the candidates, it became clear to me, absolutely that Gov. Romney was the man who would best lead this country.” Jan. 29, 2008
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,326374,00.html
Exposing the Dept. of Job Security
http://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2007/02/exposing_the_de.html
Phil Perry was one of the biggest problems at DHS:
[snip] Walker said the problem is “systemic” and not the fault of any single individual. But he complained that GAO has had to go through the office of General Counsel Philip Perry. Perry is married to Elizabeth Cheney, a former State Department official who is one of the vice president’s two daughters. Walker said it is his understanding that people from Perry’s office have to review documents GAO seeks before they are released and selectively sit in on interviews with department employees.
“When you have more lawyers in a meeting than program people, you know you got a problem. Something needs to be done about this,” Walker said.
Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner said his investigations have also been hindered. “We’re experiencing the same problem,” said Skinner, who added his office is “oftentimes” told who they can interview and that it sometimes takes weeks to get documents.
Perry’s questionable behavior extends far beyond nepotism and delaying investigations. He’s also a pro at jumping back and forth between government and the private sector, doing what he can to benefit industry along the way. After Bush became president, Perry moved from being a junior partner at the DC law firm Latham & Watkins to holding the position of Associate-Attorney General for the Department of Justice. He then moved to the Office of Management and Budget as General Counsel, where he had a hand in drafting plans for DHS. In 2003, he returned to Latham & Watkins as a member of their Homeland Security practice group and lobbied on behalf of Lockheed Martin and other companies.
An article by Art Levine in the most recent addition of the Washington Monthly chronicles Perry’s exploits over the course of his career. By the time Perry joined DHS, he was a veteran advocate for the chemical industry and government contractors, and he had also made the right connections in government. Levine states:
Enter Philip Perry. When Michael Chertoff was nominated to head the DHS in 2005, he had asked Perry to join him as the department’s general counsel. The two were not only colleagues at Latham & Watkins but also members of the conservative Federalist Society, and they were of like minds in their general distrust of government regulation of business. By the summer of 2006, as various bills competed for attention, Perry’s services were in great demand. “Industry went back to the well,” says one DHS official.
To no surprise, Perry’s “revolving door” habits haven’t ended with his position at DHS. Secretary Chertoff announced on Jan. 23 that Perry would be resigning from DHS by Feb. 6, presumably to rejoin his old law firm. Although Perry’s exit will undoubtedly be an improvement for DHS accountability, the enormous problems that he had a hand in creating at the Department still remain.
It's ignorance. Most but not all of it willful.
She can run for congress. I don’t think anyone wants her to run for president. For that matter, let Romney run for the Senate. Much rather have him there than in the oval office.