The Rogue Vice-President

The New York Times posts a story about tensions between the president's office and the vice-president's office over the Cheney shooting incident. Reportedly, the White House has split into warring camps over how best to manage this scandal.

The tension between President Bush's staff and Mr. Cheney's has been palpable, with White House officials whispering to reporters about how they tried to handle the news of the shooting differently. Mr. McClellan, while being careful not to cross Mr. Cheney or his aides directly, has made a point of reminding reporters of how he dealt with Mr. Bush's bicycle accident last summer, when the president collided with a Scottish policeman at the G-8 summit.

"I immediately briefed the press on how the accident had happened, and the condition of the police officer," who was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, Mr. McClellan said.

His message was clear: There was a procedure for conveying this kind of news, and it was not followed in this case.

The past three days have underscored, in public, what has always been clear in the Bush White House: Mr. Cheney plays by rules of his own making. It is the freedom that only a political figure who knows he is in his last job — he often says he will never run again — can get away with.

The passage above reminds me of a previous post when it appeared that in the Bush administration, the vice-president occupies a parallel sphere of influence, rather than one which is subordinate to the president.

The vice president's office is not an agency of the executive branch? Then, what is it? Does Cheney really fancy himself co-president as so many of his critics characterize him? This would explain a lot.

It would explain, for example, why Cheney assumed the authority to order military planes to shoot down civilian aircraft on September 11, 2001. It would explain why, this October, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan gave the impression that he did not have the authority to answer questions on behalf of the vice president.

That episode was not, apparently, an exception.

I find it extremely disturbing that there are actually questions as to whether the President of the United States is in charge at the White House. Assuming he is able, Bush needs to step in and fix this now.