Unlike Palin, Biden Knows What The VP Does

Sarah Palin described for a third-grader last week how she wants to abuse the power of the Vice-President's office. It was an over simplification of exactly how she sees being McCain's number two but important nonetheless of how she emulates the Dick Cheney method of corrupting government. Joe Biden was actually interviewed by a fifth-grader recently and at about the 4:00 min mark of this very cute video, he accurately tells young Damon Weaver what the VP does per the Constitution of the United States.

Chris Matthews Schools Pfotenhauer On VP Role

Nancy tries to spin Palin's answers as best she can but in the end Matthews embarrasses her. How sad is that the Republicans do not understand the role of the Vice-President as the Constitution lays it out.



I smell a serious amount of smoke from this campaign.

Palin Still Has No Idea What The VP Does

Not even three months ago, Governor Sarah Palin went on CNBC and proclaimed she had no idea what the Vice-President of the United States does. More than that, she thought it was more important to be govern Alaska, but that is neither here nor there. Yet as of October 20th, she still does not know the duties of the Vice-President. Apparently an NBC-affiliate reporter in Colorado "Couricized" her with a basic question and she fell in the trap yet again.

From ThinkProgress:

Yesterday, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) sat for an interview with KUSA, an NBC affiliate in Colorado. In response to a question sent to the network by a third grader at a local elementary school about what the Vice President does, Palin erroneously argued that the Vice President is “in charge of the United States Senate“:

Q: Brandon Garcia wants to know, “What does the Vice President do?”

PALIN: That’s something that Piper would ask me! … [T]hey’re in charge of the U.S. Senate so if they want to they can really get in there with the senators and make a lot of good policy changes that will make life better for Brandon and his family and his classroom.

Indeed, while Palin suggests that questions about what the Vice President does is something only her daughter Piper would ask, Palin herself asked this very question on national television in July. Apparently, she still hasn’t learned the correct answer.

Article I of the Constitution establishes an exceptionally limited role for the Vice President — giving the office holder a vote only when the Senate is “equally divided”:

The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided.

Damn, so it was actually a third-grader that stumped her. Even if McCain brought in Dick Cheney to give her a run-down on some of his activities, she should recognize that he himself doesn't know that the the VP is in the Executive branch. Perhaps she should pick up a copy of the Constitution, before Bush shreds the rest of it.

Vice President Webb?

Senator Jim Webb is quite green politically speaking, but that might just thrust him into a very important role. His name is one of a few being floated already for the Vice Presidential nomination on the Democratic side. There are plenty of politicians that are looking at that second billing with wanting eyes, but Webb has many advantages that others do not have. Not only that, but party leaders are seeing that and probably gave him this gift as a strong signal to the Senator.

From The Washington Post:

The freshman senator from Virginia delivered the keynote address to the New Hampshire Democratic Party at its annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner a week ago, a role that in recent years has been played by current and former White House candidates John Edwards and John F. Kerry. Two years ago the speech was delivered by Sen. Evan Bayh (Ind.), who is viewed as a potential vice presidential pick next year.

Webb's role in the debate over Iraq and Iran has helped raise his profile far beyond that of the typical Senate newcomer. Webb is the only freshman Democrat to regularly attend Iraq strategy sessions in Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid's office, and his proposal to extend home leaves for U.S. troops came closer to forcing a change in administration war policy than any other Democratic bill.

His upset of Sen. George Allen (R) last year and the prominent part he has taken in the congressional debate over Iraq have led to his being mentioned as a potential ticket-mate for the party's nominee in 2008. But he has made no effort to advance that cause with the leading Democratic contender in recent weeks.

Webb really does not have to move much of a muscle to have his name mentioned for the VP bid. Frankly, his record speaks for him. Except for a few things here and there, he is a strong supporter of what the base wants to see in the party as a whole. As a military man that has not been scarred by politics in Washington that won a state that is increasingly turning from red to blue at least a nice shade of purple, Webb is a hot commodity indeed.

Cheney One Step Closer To Losing His Funding

A Senate Panel voted 5-4 tonight along party lines to deny Dick Cheney's budget for his office in the next fiscal year. Democrats were prompted to do so because the VP has blatantly disregarded the law and specifically declared himself to be above the law by claiming his office wasn't in the Executive branch. Cheney is trying to avoid the laws set down by the Constitution concerning his office because, well....it gets in his way.

From Yahoo News:

At issue is a requirement that executive branch offices provide data on how much material they classify and declassify. That information is to be provided to the Information Security Oversight Office at The National Archives.

Cheney's office, with backing from the White House, argues that the offices of the president and vice president are exempt from the order because they are not executive branch "agencies."

The funding cut came as the appropriations panel approved 5-4 along party lines a measure funding White House operations, the Treasury Department and many smaller agencies.

Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, said Cheney's office was flouting requirements that it comply with the reporting requirements on classified information.

"Neither Mr. Cheney or his staff is above the law or the Constitution," Durbin said. "For the vice president to believe that he has no responsibility to meet this requirement of the law is a dereliction of duty."

Cheney has been derelict of his duty for some time now. This is just another episode in his war against our democracy. He wants things his way and if that conflicts with the rule of law, his own interests win out every single time. He only gets away with it because we as a nation allow him to be in that office with the power that it affords and is gaining with Cheney at the helm. There is only one answer to this problem and it starts with the letter "I."

Dana Perino Is Clueless About The Constitution

Dana Perino, stooge press secretary for the President clearly does not know what is written about the Vice-President's office in the U.S. Constitution. Reporters tried to ask her about Cheney's declaration that his office is not part of the Executive branch, but as any dutiful aide inside the White House, she couldn't give a straight answer.