Sarah Palin endorses Dick Cheney style power at VP debate

During the vice presidential debate last night, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said that she agreed with Vice President Cheneys belief that there is a lot of flexibility in the Office of the Vice President and that she was thankful the Constitution would allow a bit more authority given to the vice president.
In an interview with Fox News Carl Cameron this morning, Palin attempted to explain what she meant about the flexibility of the vice presidency. The vice president, of course, is not a member — or a part of the legislative branch, except to oversee the Senate, said Palin. That alone provides a tremendous amount of flexibility and authority if that vice president so chose to use it.

She then claimed that she intended on bleeding her authority over to the Legislative or Judicial branch in order to push McCains agenda:

CAMERON: Would you change any of that, (INAUDIBLE) than the Bush/Cheney administration in terms of the power of the executive?

PALIN: Well, again, as I tried to explain last night, our executive branch will know what our job is. We have the three very distinct branches of government. You know, we might be bleeding our authority over to the Legislative or Judicial branch to do our job in the Executive branch as administers.

Palins fuzzy answers on the power of the Office of the Vice President do not inspire confidence, considering that she has a record of Cheney-like secrecy and has refused to say whether her office will legally be part of the Executive branch. As the LA Times Jim Newton notes, Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution makes it clear to most scholars that the vice president is part of the executive branch.
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/10/03/palin-bleeding-authority/
In last night's debate, there was one answer that caused the entire left blogosphere to spit coffee all over their keyboards, and worked Chris Matthews up. But, the line was largely lost in today's analysis. In the end, however, it could be the undoing of the McCain campaign.

In response to a question as to whether Dick Cheney's view of the Vice Presidency was right, not only did Sarah Palin say it was, but hinted that she'd like even MORE power, as VP.

In just over a week, it is expected that the Troopergate report on Palin's alleged abuse of power will come out. While Republicans have tried like hell to make this seem like a partisan hunt, they've have their legs cut out with every step. In fact, just last evening before Palin took the stage, the court rejected two Republican motions to stop the investigation. And, by the way, it isn't looking good. Apparently, one witness who had maintained Palin did nothing wrong, flipped her story under oath.

Unless there are scary-as-hell circumstances that cause American's to lose their passion for civil liberties and separation of powers (see Patriot Act), Americans traditionally look very poorly at power grabbing and abuse.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-schmeltzer/the-line-that-could-sink_b_1317...
Katie Couric asked the vice presidential nominees what is the "best and worst thing that Dick Cheney has done as Vice President?" Biden on Cheney's worst thing:
I think he's done more harm than any other single elected official in memory in terms of shredding the constitution. You know --condoning torture. Pushing torture as a policy. This idea of a unitary executive. Meaning the Congress and the people have no power in a time of war. And the President controls everything. I don't have any animus toward Dick Cheney but I really do think his attitude about the constitution and the prosecution of this war has been absolutely wrong.

What about Palin? Here's her answer:
Worst thing I guess that would have been the duck hunting accident--where you know, that was an accident. And I think that was made into a caricature of him. And that was kind of unfortunate.
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/torture-v-shoot....

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• vice
• president
• debate
• Chris
• Matthews
• Sarah
• palin
• lie
• Troopergate
• Joe
• Biden
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• Cheney
• Rachel
• Maddow
• Barack
• Obama
• Mccain

[cagedtigersteve]

Palin will continue to shred the Constitution.

[Sehara]

This woman is dangerous. Country first-is this some sort of list of what she will destroy?

[jccusell]

@TheWillIamLee87

THat's like asking why this honey tastes awfully bitter. The answer is obvious : it;s not honey.

[TheWillIamLee87]

why do conservatives continue to find excuses to enhance the power of and otherwise increase the size of the government. That goes directly against conservative principles yet they continue to find moral or fear based reasoning. Both parties are hell bent on increasing the size of our government the only difference is in which areas the government is expanded and which "moral" codes guide these expansions.

[gombis666]

HAHAHAHA! Love it. -sorry. I was a year late catching up with your comment.... =0)

[gombis666]

Sad, sad lady...

[lordhashi]

The first VP john adams Said it was the most useless job

You are there to Help pres Preside over tie vote other than that sit in the observatory

[kerouac1000]

Bush is stupid, Cheney is stupid, Rumsfeld is stupid, Palin is stupid.. No wonder the US is in the situation it finds itself in today.

[renijohn012270]

So pathetic and sickening conservatives have become!! They forget:

1) The Act of Torture itself,,,,, issued by the Bush Administration ,,,,,,,IS THE DIRECT REASON WHY THOUSANDS ARE SIGNING UP FOR BIN LADEN'S AL' QADIA NETWORK.

2) Invading Iraq and killing thousands of muslim brothers and sisters has created and recruited 150 more Usma Bin Ladens.

3) Supporting Israel and giving them billions in aid is only adding more fuel to the fire!

Wake up you degenerate braindead chicken hawks!

[tyvon2000]

I hope ppl don't miss my obvious sarcasm.

[tyvon2000]

No, let's just keep quiet and expand power after election.... like moving the census to the white house so we can make sure blue states don't lose electoral votes.

[ecwaufisxtreme]

Dickless Cheney has the vagina. Palin has the REAL DICK and BALLS!