[eDebate] dump spiro cheney talk

[Jack Stroube]

karl rove's call but will he himself get dragged into a daily frontpage barrage by a 
special prosecutor?

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-schaller6nov06,1,5474186.story?coll=la-
headlines-oped-manual

Has Cheney Turned Into a Liability?
            Iraq and domestic failures might cost him a place on the 2004 ticket.

By Mary Lynn F. Jones and Thomas F. Schaller, Mary Lynn F. Jones covers Congress for 
the Hill newspaper in Washington. Thomas F. Schaller is a political scientist at the 
University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

 Is Vice President Dick Cheney an electoral liability for President Bush? Some top 
Republicans are reportedly worried that Cheney's actions might threaten Bush's bid for 
reelection in 2004.
 
  The dump-Cheney talk probably originated with disgruntled State Department folks, 
who would like nothing better than to undermine the neocon foreign policy cabal 
headed by Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. The movement's 
underlying premise is that the vice president's hawkish positions and statements related 
to terrorism, Iraq and foreign policy have put Bush at risk.
 
  But even as more Republicans criticize the handling of postwar Iraq, international 
issues are only half the story. Another problem is Cheney's failed stewardship of the 
administration's domestic agenda in Congress, which also leaves the president 
vulnerable next year.
 
  Cheney is the administration's chief legislative officer, responsible for shepherding its 
priorities through Congress. He's a regular presence at the weekly Senate Republican 
policy lunches. He also is the first vice president to maintain offices in both chambers. 
As a former House minority whip, Cheney is surpassed by few in knowing what makes 
the institution run.
 
  Despite Cheney's unprecedented ties to the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, 
Congress has publicly rebuffed the administration on a series of legislative matters. 
Barring late reversals, the White House defeats will include changes in overtime 
regulations, the FCC's ruling on media consolidation and the end of the travel ban to 
Cuba, despite veto threats from the president.
 
  Other bills, such as Washington, D.C., school vouchers s and Head Start funding, have 
passed the House by a single vote. Several judicial nominees, such as Charles Pickering, 
have yet to win Senate confirmation.
 
  Cheney's role in pushing the administration's agenda isn't likely to get any easier. 
Heading into 2004, all House members and one-third of the Senate are up for 
reelection. Although they want a second Bush term, they've got their own reelections to 
think about. As Cheney's batting average on Capitol Hill drops, moderate Republicans 
are straying from the White House line. Even reliable members of the GOP caucus are 
abandoning ship on issues such as the Cuba bill. When that happens, the White House 
knows it's in trouble. Of course, not all of the fault lies with Cheney. The White House 
dispatches other advisors to make its case on Capitol Hill. Party leaders such as Bill Frist 
in the Senate and Tom DeLay in the House share the blame.
 
  But Cheney's own actions have made him an unusually inviting target. He snubbed 
Congress and the General Accounting Office by refusing to answer questions about his 
energy task force. The panel, which came under fire for meeting with industry groups, 
helped shape the administration's energy agenda. The uncontested bid by Cheney's 
former employer, Halliburton, to restore Iraq's oil industry left a bad taste in the mouths 
of lawmakers whose districts contained other energy companies. Democrats have 
attacked Cheney's nearly $500,000 in deferred compensation from Halliburton.
 
  The vice president's experience in Washington was supposed to balance Bush's lack of 
expertise in that area. If Cheney, who was elected six times to Congress, can't hold 
together a GOP Congress for a Republican president, perhaps Bush needs to tap 
someone else for the job.
 
  In the campaign, Bush needs to be able to point to accomplishments other than his 
management of Iraq, especially if the death toll continues to rise and his approval 
ratings continue to drop. With Cheney focusing so much of his attention on terrorism 
and Iraq, perhaps the vice president has lost sight of Bush's legislative agenda. If so, 
Cheney may prove to be a bigger domestic liability to Bush than he is a foreign policy 
burden. Bush will have to decide whether he can afford both worries.
 

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