Cheney Defends Presidential Powers

[sabra]

http://www.normantranscript.com/feeds/apcontent/apstories/apstorysection/D8EK1GOG6.xml.txt/resources_apstoryview

Cheney Defends Presidential Powers

The Associated Press

ABOARD AIR FORCE II —

Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday vigorously defended the Bush administration's use of secret domestic spying and the expansion of 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 he believes the power of the presidency has indeed contracted since the Vietnam and Watergate era.

He 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."

[C_U_L8R]

1. HEY DICK What part of...

"YOU BROKE THE LAW"
don't you understand ????!!!!

Someone please put this asshole behind bars

[Arkansas Granny]

2. Would be more truthful if it said "Cheney defends abuse of

Presidential powers".

[Robert Cooper]

3. They're screwed for sure now...

Any time Cheney opens his trap to make a prediction, he jinxes it.

Well done, Dick.

[Up2Late]

43. Thank You, you just made me smile for the first time in a week with that.

Let's hope you're right. :applause:

[Robert Cooper]

45. the reason black cats avoid Cheney is...

...they're afraid his bad luck will rub off.

Keep that smile. It shows you still have hope. :-)

Dick -hates- hope. :evilgrin:

[feelthebreeze]

4. Yes, defend this country by ending Democracy. I do not wish to live in...

the safe totalitarian country envisioned by these horrific monsters. They have no respect for the ideal of Democracy, they are not fit to govern one. Demand Impeachment immediately.

[Nashyra]

10. Give me liberty or give me death

Have these dimwits on the right and the MSM gotten so involed with their paycheck that they have absolutely no clue as to what they are spouting for the *. Hell I would rather stand tall for my country and the consitution, take the consequences then beg on my knees for the right to just "live" and let the gov't keep me "safe". Those people who don't give this the serious attention that is called for are in for a big surprise.

I love it, we had an past rw elected offical mention that it did not make any difference to him because he had not done anything illegal, someone mentioned that it would be interesting to have heard the phone conversations he had with his attorney during his divorce, that made him blush. It is not that we have nothing to hide, it is the fact that at anytime they could make anything they want to be illegal, and anything they want to do they can call legal.

We must find a message to breach the divide that appeals to some of these moderates, that is not saying we need to fold, just the opposite. The Dems in Congress need to hammer home two issues.

1) They already had permission to spy first and get warrants within 72 hours, this is so they could be effective and have spur of the moment ability but the court would have a "trail" as so the gov't of EITHER party could abuse it's citizens.

2) If this administration can do it they are giving permission for future administrations to do the same or set precedent for NOT having to follow the "Rule of Law", that was what was so important to the RW when "Clinton Lied"

and a third is the fact that THIS ADMINISTRATION BLOCKED the FISA warrant for Moussaui, they are the ones that did not apply the law correctly.

[tabasco]

44. Cheney thinks he is CEO of America, Inc.

Not far from the truth actually.

[DemReadingDU]

5. The Republican spin

Always blame the person who does not agree with you.

[woodsprite]

6. No. He's right. It wasn't an accident. They planned it that way. n/t

[Gidney N Cloyd]

"it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years"

I suspect it wasn't exactly an accident four years ago, either...

[frylock]

30. mihop..

believe it.

[yellowcanine]

36. Somebody needs to remind Dickhead that 8 years elapsed between the

first attack on the WTC and the second and Clinton did not have to break the law to protect us during that time.

[Gregorian]

7. Cheney snarls, lashes out like wounded rabid badger.

You see, we're toruring them over there so we don't have to torture them over here. We're tearing fingernails out, in the name of American Freedom®.

[ixion]

8. hey Dick, as an American Person

let me tell you that I DO NOT support little lord chimperoy's bogus anti-freedom strategies to reduce our republic to banana status.

[Strawman]

9. Fuck all the laws then

Just fuck them. What do we need the rule of law for? That's for waffling Northeastern liberal pussies. God wants certain people to have power and to use it without any restraint. We'll never be safe from those Ayrabs who hate our "freedoms" as long as we have these useful idiot libruls in our midst. Why not just put them all in camps and get it over with! I don't want my President to have to go through all that paperwork to get a warrant to spy on those quilters at the local Episcopal church! I need to make sure my manure patch in the Heartland is safe from terra!
:mad:



Economically we were already on the road to banana republic status thanks to these clowns in power, now we're there politically.

[tecelote]

11. No, we haven't been attacked.

But Katrina showed us just how prepared you are, Dick.

Plus, the issue is not the evesdropping. It's warrantless evesdropping.

Americans believe that the President and the Vice President are bound by the same laws as we are. Plus, we like the Constitution you promised to uphold.

But, you broke the law.

There is no defense. It didn't stop or help terrorists. It has nothing to do with terrorisms.

It has everything to do with your contempt for America and Americans.

You are a criminal.

[primavera]

38. There's been no need to attack us...

... we've already done more to ourselves than Osama bin Forgotten could ever have done to us in his wildest dreams.

[54anickel]

46. Got that right! Everything this mal-admin does puts another mark in

the win column for OBL. Makes you wonder if they aren't in cahoots or something.

US outta Saudi Arabia --- check
Saddam and his secularism outta Iraq --- check
Separate State for Palestine --- workin' on it
US will be reduced to a mere shadow of itself --- yep!

Any other OBL demands that I missed?

[primavera]

47. Oh sure, there's lots more!

How about the US converted into an isolated, global pariah, a recruiting poster for fundamentalist terrorism, and a rallying point against which the nations of the world can unite? How about us subjecting little old ladies to strip searches at airports because they carried dangerous emory boards in their purses? Or imprisoning our own citizens without trial or legal representation based upon no evidence? Or shredding our own constitution, turning citizen against citizen, and reducing us to a "your papers, please" police state? Oh hell, the list of things we've done for Osama goes on for volumes!

[DemonFighterLives]

12. Well excuse me dick

if we failed to give you total control over everything. Go cry to TIA Poindexter and Negroponte and Kissinger.
You dirty thugs have done enough damage and we don't need an idiot looking at everything that Americans do.
I know that following the law is a new concept for these creeps, but someone, somehow needs to stick it to em.
Come'on Fitz!

[wicket]

13. Did you forget about the Anthrax attacks, Dick?

It was an attempted assassination of Democratic leaders and most certainly was a terrorist attack. Idiot. :eyes:

[MadisonProgressive]

17. He doesn't count that because that was a Bushco sponsored job.

[SammyWinstonJack]

41. So was 9/11.

[Ezlivin]

27. WE WERE HIT! Don't forget the ANTHRAX attacks!

The only reason they forget to mention them is because they were involved in setting them up.

Another black-op.

And I'm solidly MIHOP on 9/11. And the first WTC attack. And the OK City bombing. Everytime they had the Patriot Act ready to go. It took them three times, but they got it.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

14. The thing that really pisses me off...

...is that I suspect I might not even be opposed to the sort of data mining they wanted to do AS LONG AS THERE WAS STRICT OVERSIGHT IN PLACE TO PREVENT ABUSE. And I suspect a lot of people feel the same way. But there's just no way in hell you can justify using this sort of power with no supervision whatsoever. It's insane and wrong.

[MadisonProgressive]

15. And Dick has so much moral authority - yep, I believe him!

[David__77]

16. This is fascism.

Plain and simple. The only good thing is that the U.S. can no longer credibly discuss "human rights" as a pretext for intervention in every corner of the planet, like Clinton did. At least the people of the world know that they can make a choice: stand up as a sovereign, independent country, or be a neo-colony to the U.S.

[dapper]

18. I posted another thread

ABOARD AIR FORCE II - Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday vigorously defended the Bush administration's use of secret domestic spying and the expansion of presidential powers, saying "it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years."

uh, dipwad, the Twin Towers were bombed in 1993 and then again in 2001, 8 years between attacks! AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH WIRETAPS!

STOP USING 911 FOR YOUR POLITICAL GAIN. YOU HAD A CHANCE TO STOP IT BUT YOU DIDN'T...


Dap

[Rose Siding]

19. He's completely insane

"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."

And he's ready to kill the War Powers Act:

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."

I believe this emerge as having been the motivation behind every single SCOTUS nominee.

[Rose Siding]

25. Whoops- these quotes are from a different rpt. Link-

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/print?id=1424802

[wordpix2]

26. total power for * means dicktatorial power for The Dick

who's the real power behind the throne

[cliss]

28. I think Mr. Mystery tells us exactly who he is:

Cheney here is telling us that the VietNam war caused the president's powers to be eroded.

No wonder! Our country was in a civil war over it. Something had to be done. We had to get out of VietNam. Even then, there were generals who felt that the war was "winnable", if we could just hang on another 3 months, 3 years, maybe 3 decades. It was just out of control.

And here comes Mr. Cheney. Let there be NO doubt about where he stands.

[grytpype]

20. And if we did get hit, they would want EVEN MORE dictatorial powers!

They can't lose, apparently. Except in Reality.

[bpilgrim]

21. Go Fuck Yourself, Mr. Cheney!

Dr. Ben Marble: "Fuck You, Mr. Cheney!"Physician who told off Cheney lost home in Katrina, arrested, selling video on eBay

Dr. Ben Marble, a young emergency room physician who plays in alternative rock bands and does art on the side, needs our help. Since he was the one who told Dick Cheney to "go fuck yourself" on Thursday, that's the least we can do.

more...
http://news.globalfreepress.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=search&cat=0&pos=1

psst... pass the word ;->

peace

[shanti]

22. of course he does

he and the neocons are behind all of it!

[SillyGoose]

23. Enough already with this snide language of implying that those who

disagree with the Administration are anti-American. I'm fed up with this tactic of attacking their opponent's patriotism.

The backlash, Dick, will be against "those who are suggesting somehow" that they are above the law.

[stickdog]

24. Dick Cheney before he dicks you.

[stepnw1f]

29. Oh, He's Funny!

In a really f*cked way! Dick, you need to go to jail, asshole!

[goforit]

31. Hey Dick ......we want those NAMMMMES!!!!

[goforit]

32. Hit us,Dick????....I thank you, specifically for not hitting us again!!!

But go ahead and keep robbing us blind with Haliburton and Oil thuggery
just use our tax money for your own private use!!!!

[cboy4]

33. Big Dick Cheney has to be smoking a lot of crack

if he truly believes half of the shit that comes out of his ignorant mouth.

What a disgrace. He is by far worst V.P. this country has ever known.

[primavera]

39. Who knew anyone could ever make Dan Quayle look good?

At least he was just a bumbling idiot rather than a homocidal sociopath.

[Joe Chi Minh]

34. There's a surprise...

[MellowOne]

35. It's still amazing

They continue to defend and support each other even while breaking the law.

[President Kerry]

37. even when?

That's all they do all the goddamn time. They being either irresponsible or criminal (or both) at ANY given time.

[Triana]

40. Oh. Well that makes ME feel safer. You?

That snarling, vile bastard. His 'excuses' for wanting to spy on U.S. citizens have well been gutted and no one is buying them.

Howz about this: We get Tricky Dick II, his wifey, his kids, bu$hit, all of his family, every Republican in the White House that supports this shiite and every Republican that voted for those Republicans to submit their SS#, phone number, bank records, educational and criminal records, library records, IP addresses, street addresses, professional records, email addresses, etc. to US-uns at DU so we can have a niiiice close look at their communications, identities, finances, and background?

Eh?

WHY NOT? If they're not TERRORISTS, then they have NOTHING to hide, right? How about that new driver's license Gee DUHbya got so as to cover up his drunken driving record? How about his military AWOL records? HOW ABOUT those records from Tricky Dick II's Energy Task Force. WHERE did his wife buy her underwear and what size were they? What kind of underwear do TERRORISTS wear anyway? Shouldn't we KNOW? If Mrs bu$h is sending out CHRISTmas cards that say HAPPY HOLIDAYS on them, doesn't that make HER a terrorist that hates 'Merica?

If they have nothing to hide, then they won't mind, right? Fair is fair after all. And you never know--some TERRORISTS just might be lurking in our house in Washington DC! In fact, I'm SURE there are. . .

[Up2Late]

Cheney says 9/11 changed the rules (IHT/NYT)

(This is one scary guy)

Cheney says 9/11 changed the rules

By Richard W. Stevenson The New York Times

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2005
MUSCAT, Oman Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday explained and defended the administration's assertion of broad presidential powers, saying that executive authority had become dangerously constrained before President George W. Bush took office and had to be restored to fight the threat from terrorism. "I believe in a strong, robust executive authority and I think that the world we live in demands it," he said.

Speaking with a small group of reporters on Air Force Two as he flew from Pakistan to Oman, Cheney laid out more fully and explicitly than any senior official the administration's thinking on the need for a stronger presidency. And he directly linked the effort to strengthen it under Bush to the nation's safety since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "You know, it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years," he said.

Cheney acknowledged that the disclosure last week of a secret administration program to eavesdrop on a limited number of international phone calls might reopen debate over whether Bush had taken too expansive a view of presidential power. But he was unapologetic about the program and suggested that it was well within the bounds of what he considered an appropriate use of executive authority.

"I'm sure there is going to be a debate," he said. "It's an important subject. Again, I would argue that the actions that we've taken there are totally appropriate and consistent with the constitutional authority of the president."

Cheney has long been seen as an advocate of an assertive presidency. In response to questions about the roots of his thinking and his role in shaping the administration's policy, he made clear his strong views on the issue.

<http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/12/20/news/policy.php>
(more at link above)

[Trillo]

42. Cheney: Please "Prove"

that only international calls were bugged.

With the deluge of LIES we've been told, only a moron would believe what any official says at this point.

[Miss Chybil]

48. "...not an accident we haven't been hit in four years."

To me this is akin to "bring it on." I'm scared.

On the other hand, Mr. Cheney, nobody says you shouldn't wiretap suspected terrorists. We are only saying you must abide the law when you do it to ensure you are protecting our rights and liberties, as well as our bodies.

[rodeodance]

49. AP--Cheney Says President Has Spying Authority

The man is an idiot --pure and simple.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051221/ap_on_go_co/domestic_spying

Cheney Says President Has Spying Authority

By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer 51 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday called for "strong and robust" presidential powers, saying executive authority was eroded during the Watergate and Vietnam eras. Some lawmakers objected that President Bush's decision to spy on Americans to foil terrorists showed he was flexing more muscle than the Constitution allows.


The revelations of Bush's four-year-old order approving domestic surveillance without court warrants has spurred a fiery debate over the balance of power between the White House, Congress and the judiciary.
"I believe in a strong, robust executive authority and I think that the world we live in demands it," Cheney said.

"I would argue that the actions that we've taken there are totally appropriate and consistent with the constitutional authority of the president. ... You know, it's not an accident that we haven't been hit in four years," the vice president said, speaking with reporters on Air Force Two en route from Pakistan to Oman.

[reality based]

50. How about a joint impeachment?

[rodeodance]

51. "I believe in a strong, robust executive authority "--and he grabs what he

can.

[savemefromdumbya]

52. We know it is not an accident that we haven't been hit because..

cheny organized the last one!!!!