Dick Cheney, thumbing his nose at us to the very last?
At first I thought, ''Riiiiiight ... ''
The Bush White House, on its last night in power, announced that Vice President Dick Cheney pulled a muscle in his back while moving boxes. He'll be in a wheelchair for the Obama inauguration.
Dick Cheney -- a man with a ticker so bum that even Dr. House couldn't help him -- is moving boxes? Don't those people have people to do all that menial schlepping for them?
And then I thought, hmmmm, what kind of boxes would be so important that the almost-ex-vice president would be moving them himself?
And then I thought ... oh, those kinds of boxes. Boxes full of papers that he doesn't want anyone else to see, ever? Boxes destined for his home shredder? That would be, uh, back in Wyoming?
A week before Christmas -- which was about three months after a federal judge had ordered Cheney's office to preserve all his official records -- Cheney's lawyers were back in court, blathering that only the vice president can decide which records from his eight years in office should by law be handed over to the National Archives by ... oh, what's that deadline again?
Oh yes -- noon on January 20, when he ceases to be the vice president. The same date when, according to the Associated Press story about the court case, Cheney could be ''potentially taking millions of records that might otherwise become public.''
Cheney's being sued by a public watchdog group under a 30-year-old law requiring the departing president and vice president to hand over to the National Archives virtually all of their records from their time in office. Cheney's essentially blown raspberries at the law, and its enforcers. After some National Archives staff tried to conduct a routine inspection of Cheney's papers several years ago, his staff reportedly tried to get that inspection unit abolished.
Cheney will be in a wheelchair for only a couple of days, the White House assured us. Wheelchair or no, can someone please frisk him on his way out? Remember, Oliver North's secretary, Fawn Hall, eluded NSC investigators by smuggling highly classified documents out of her boss' office -- in her boots.
EPA/Mike Theiler
Chris, it wasn't an old photo -- you're commenting in May on a post from January, and the photo was taken the same day the post ran.
Posted by: Jon Healey | May 21, 2009 at 02:01 PM
Why the old photo? Cheney gave a educated and respectful rebuttal to Obama's confusing speech today. Obama needs an actual plan and he still doesn't know what to do about the 50 enemies at gitmo who's can't be charged, who he openly admits can't be released, or sent back to their country or origin. It's like he's arm chair quarterbacking and politicking while he figures it out. He actually thinks gitmo has created the problem in but it was in fact 911. They didn't break any laws the followed article 2 which was secondly ratified by congress. I live in LA and the planned attack on LA was stopped by water boarding. Can you imagine how the terrorist would have used footage of LA attack as a recruiting tool more than the prisoners in gitmo?
Posted by: Chris | May 21, 2009 at 01:44 PM
Its not a back injury - he must have had a stroke! What a shame, such a nice guy - NOT.
Wheb will somebody expose this crook now that he's out of office?
Posted by: peter a | January 24, 2009 at 09:24 AM
Keeping a low profile may have been one of Chenny's excuse for the wheelchair, but perhaps he used it as a reason for not standing and showing respect to Obama. nothing that man did would surprise me.
Posted by: JOLIE | January 23, 2009 at 10:55 PM
Holly Mackerel said:"Still digging in the bitter hole you can't get yourself out of. Of all the things to report on on this remarkable day, try inspiring people with forward looking, thought provoking, journalism. Dark journalist are a dime a dozen..."
Let me guess. Your favorite media heroes are Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Michele Malkin. No bitterness or darkness there?
Posted by: deBeauxOs | January 21, 2009 at 11:37 AM
kinda suspect. Back injuries affecting standing/walking would be lumbar back related, and sitting is very bad for the lumbar spine.
Perhaps he's sitting so that he can maintain a lower profile & decrease the chance of getting hit by flying objects (rotten eggs, yomatoes copies of the Constitution he regularly uses for toilet paper, etc)
Posted by: JPW | January 21, 2009 at 08:56 AM
I thought the same thing, why would he be moving boxes. Then it dawn on me, it's probably Abu Ghurab porn pics, or video of some very ooky rendition video that he's suddenly secretly ashamed of. Regardless the actual video of him being wheeled off the stage of history was very "Dr Strangelove" I fully expected him to lock his chair wheels, leap up and shout "...mein fuhrer I can valk."
Posted by: Andy | January 21, 2009 at 01:10 AM
I think this blog post is well researched and relevant. The Bush administration, and Cheney in particular, have tried to hide tons of evidence about their activities all along. Of course they are doing it to the end. It will be months and years more that we will be learning of their secret misconduct.
Posted by: Jason R | January 20, 2009 at 08:44 PM
Let it go already, good GRIEF! You d-bags are so freakin bitter.
You're only paranoid if they're REALLY out to get you....are they?
Posted by: MyTwoCents | January 20, 2009 at 12:00 PM
For Steve Mashni,
it is a great day today. We have finally gotten rid of an evil group of people who abused their power. It is so sad that stupid people like you exist that actually voted these idiots in. We have you to thnk for the mess we are in.
Posted by: Jude Nazareth | January 20, 2009 at 11:40 AM
Dick Cheney Wheeled out of White House
And George Bush has left the White House
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpiqgi0E738
Posted by: cheneywatch | January 20, 2009 at 09:23 AM
Conspiracy theorists unite!!
Posted by: Olive Stone | January 20, 2009 at 07:53 AM
You really dug deep for this CRAP.
Posted by: Joe | January 20, 2009 at 07:43 AM
At least he's not Al.
Posted by: atomic puss | January 20, 2009 at 07:29 AM
Poor Patt Morrison. Still digging in the bitter hole you can't get yourself out of. Of all the things to report on on this remarkable day, try inspiring people with forward looking, thought provoking, journalism. Dark journalist are a dime a dozen and if you haven't noticed there is a new much more delightful force in reporting. These journalists have taken off their black ski masks and put down their cynical prose to embrace a a future that is better than the LA Times! Challenge yourself!
Your choice!
Posted by: Holly Mackey | January 20, 2009 at 06:49 AM
this person thinks that everyone is like hillary clinton and other liberal icons who stuff papers in their underwear as they skip out of top secret files sections of d.c. get a life. today's the media's and the lefts' party why not enjoy it instead of just spitting at conservatives to the last minute. you'll have four years to gloat over us. why don't you give it a rest for a day. jerk.
Posted by: steve mashni | January 20, 2009 at 06:43 AM