Stripping Cheney
The New York Times lets Dick Cheney have it in an editorial:
I mean really, exactly what branch is Cheney in? I've re-read the Constitution and I can't find the Sith Branch in it anywhere.
Naturally, it will probably never happen, but it sure would be a hoot and a smart move by Democrats if they could actually strip Cheney's office of all money other than that used to protect him and his family. I'm sure the carnage could continue apace without his direct involvement, so there would be no issue of "threatening the troops in the field," since (ahem) Cheney isn't part of the executive branch.
Cheney has declared himself above the control of the people's government, much as a would-be emperor would, and it would serve him right to be stripped of any but the most basic funds. The money saved could be donated to veterans' charities or something.
Vice President Dick Cheney sets the gold standard, placing himself not just above Congress and the courts but above Mr. Bush himself. For the last four years, he has been defying a presidential order requiring executive branch agencies to account for the classified information they handle. When the agency that enforces this rule tried to do its job, Mr. Cheney proposed abolishing the agency.A Shaun at Upper Left notes, Rahm Emanuel is forcing the issue by threatening to de-fund the office of the vice-president, on the grounds that if Cheney wants to claim he's not part of the executive branch then Congress shouldn't fund his operations. Which sounds like a good idea to me.
Mr. Cheney, who has been at the heart of the administration’s darkest episodes, has bizarre reasons for doing that. The Times reported that the vice president does not consider himself a mere member of the executive branch. No, he decided the vice president is also a lawmaker — because he is titular president of the Senate — and does not have to answer to the executive branch. That is absurd, but if that’s how he wants it, we presume Mr. Cheney will stop claiming executive privilege to withhold information from his fellow congressmen.
I mean really, exactly what branch is Cheney in? I've re-read the Constitution and I can't find the Sith Branch in it anywhere.
Naturally, it will probably never happen, but it sure would be a hoot and a smart move by Democrats if they could actually strip Cheney's office of all money other than that used to protect him and his family. I'm sure the carnage could continue apace without his direct involvement, so there would be no issue of "threatening the troops in the field," since (ahem) Cheney isn't part of the executive branch.
Cheney has declared himself above the control of the people's government, much as a would-be emperor would, and it would serve him right to be stripped of any but the most basic funds. The money saved could be donated to veterans' charities or something.
