Posted on 07/18/2004 6:44:49 PM PDT by wagglebee
A month ago, after Vice President Dick Cheney caused a stir when he told Sen. Pat Leahy to "f--- yourself," White House Communications Director Dan Bartlett advised the Cheney team to "just make a joke of it," a senior White House official tells Newsweek.
But Cheney did not. Rather, the veep affirmed to Fox News that he had told off Leahy and "felt better afterwards."
Mary Matalin, the former White House aide who acts as an informal media and political adviser for the Cheneys tells Newsweek that she doubts Cheney had ever heard the White House official's advice. "I know what advice he was given because it came directly from me through [his daughter] Liz. And he already knew what he wanted to do," says Matalin.
It is significant that even Matalin communicated with Cheney "through Liz," the veep's 37-year-old daughter, who recently quit her job as a deputy assistant secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs to work on the Bush- Cheney re-election campaign, report White House Correspondent Tamara Lipper and Assistant Managing Editor Evan Thomas in the July 26 issue of Newsweek (on newsstands Monday, July 19).
Vice President Dick Cheney's wife, Lynne, and daughters Liz and Mary, known around the Bush-Cheney headquarters as The Family, can be intense, insular and prickly as they protect their man, his reputation and his place on the GOP ticket.
Matalin readily acknowledges the central role played by the Cheney family.
"They family together, they work together," she says. "It's a seamless operation." Liz Cheney says: "Family members can be completely honest. We're very direct with each other." That is not always true of Cheney staffers, who sometimes feel intimidated by going up against The Family. Since taking office, Cheney is on his fourth press secretary, and all of them have appeared to be afraid of even trying to pass on tough or annoying questions from reporters.
But The Family has been feeling a little besieged lately and Cheney is lagging in some polls. His favorable rating in a New York Times/CBS poll last month stood at 21 percent, compared with 39 percent for President George W. Bush. But other opinion surveys show Cheney hanging on to a slight favorable/unfavorable edge (46 to 43 percent in the latest Newsweek Poll).
A senior Bush-Cheney campaign official shrugged off the polls as meaningless. And every White House and campaign official contacted by Newsweek rejected the suggestion that Cheney might be dropped from the ticket. Still, a Bush campaign official concedes, "We didn't care enough about his image."
Buzz that Cheney may be dropped from the ticket is a "silly parlor game," says Matalin.
"Why won't he be a, you know, Washington B.S. guy? Because he's not a Washington B.S. guy," she says. "He might be burned by you guys [the media], but they love him out there...He is a reassuring guy, not because he has grandchildren sitting on his lap, but because he just exudes depth and breadth and experience and competence."
How does Matalin know anything? Did Carvel tell her?
Just watched Cheney with wife Lynn on C-Span, a repeat from Wednesday. A fine, upstanding man who, far from being a liability, is a huge asset and plus for our team.
It only takes about two minutes of hearing him speak to make you laugh off the months and months of ridiculous garbage spewed about him by his enemies. I want him in front and center from here to November, starting NOW, Rove.
You're kidding right?
Yep, they're one and same.
Just making sure.
How would you describe the "tennants of faith" for the "GOP", Sinkspur? I.e "the base"? What political elements would now characterize "the base"? What do we stand for in the "GOP"? I will "copy and paste" your answer so I can "do right" in the future.
"Great" "use" of "quotes" -- "catchy"
Interestingly enough, if you look at the history of the presidency it has only been in the last 50 years or so that a VP was presumed to keep the same spot in the reelection bid.
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Obviously, he's not in it for the hunt.
She's right, we DO love him out here.
I have a real problem with the GOP working with serpent heads wife. Is Rove stupid ?
Persistent little devil, eh?
Cheney is a great VP, with all the threats out their against the President we can't afford to have some PC choice for VP, we need someone who projects strong leadership skills.
Nice shot Jim...
All that practice, LOL, you'd think he'd be good at it by now.
That "loser" must "get" a "commission" on "those" quotation "marks."
"L"O"L"
It has been going on ever since Cheney was named by Bush as his running mate in 2000.
No doubt we'll be hearing the same thing until January 2009, when Cheney finally gets out of Cheney's house!
All these polls showing Cheney with low approval ratings (one showed him with a 28% approval rating) should immediately be considered suspect, given that he isn't polarizing, plagued by scandal, or very public to begin with.
Who the #@$# does the NYTimes poll? I haven't met a Bush voter yet who didn't love Cheney for his intelligence, honesty and toughness.
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