I thought I had posted a response to your quite lengthy list of Cheney remunerations from 2000....but I don't see it.

Why do you think his compensation package from Halliburton that was paid in 2000 is relevant? Why couldn't he get paid for a year of work before he became V.P.?

<FSR> listed some things that were disputed in the first years of his tenure as VP, and got settled by a Congressional Research branch, but <Cheney did nothing intentionally wrong>. The record is clear that no deferred compensation that Halliburton agreed to pay Cheney, would have been affected by anything that happened to the company. It was a set amount that was distributed over several years so that it wouldn't be taxed all at once*. Similar in some ways to the way parents who only have a few years left pass off their fortunes to their kids---a little bit a year so the government doesn't take it all away.

Commonly done. It is amazing how ordinary activities of Americans suddenly become huge scandals when the Democrats or the Liberal news outlets suddenly decide to scream out about Republicans doing them. The big deal with Cheney's compensation was made <a big deal ONLY WITH THE INTENT TO SMEAR HIM>. It wasn't done to correct a wrong, it wasn't done so that the government could get back into the black from unpaid taxes, it wasn't done as a means of hauling him into criminal court--IT WAS DONE AS A POLITICAL SMEAR. "CHENEY WAS PROFITING FROM HALLIBURTON CONTRACTS!!! " As though the Vice President awarded overseas construction contracts!! Or had anything to do with the GSA or whichever government department made the selection. Not even Stupid Biden has that power or authority in the Obama Govt.

Just what is a political smear?

It is an attempt to use some fact real or imaginary about a political opponent to make people dislike him. <No other result is necessary.> Ethics charges? There were none. Criminal charges? There were none. What Cheney did was in fact not even as much in violation of our traditions in the United States as <Elena Kagan's refusal to recuse herself from voting as an appointed judge> on an issue that <she was the supervisor of during her tenure as Obama's solicitor general>.

Here we have actual case of corrupt 3rd-world style strong-man type government. Obama appoints the person who oversaw the team that strategized the legality issues of Obamacare, then he appoints that strategizer to sit in judgement on the Constitutionality of that very same legislation. THAT is corrupted power on display.

Dick Cheney is no example of that.

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Jim rarely claims anything.

<I'm not claiming that affected his political decisions.>

See what I mean?

<He got a lot of money after leaving Halliburton to become VP. That's a fact.>

Its about the seriousness of the charge, not the truth.

<I'm pretty sure he would have been eager for war with Iraq in any case.>

Yeah! CHESS R0X0RZ!!

"No matter what they say about closeted communists in Congress or in the White House, Republicans - even the libertarians - heartily approve of socialism. The question in their view is about which way the money is flowing, up or down. If it's agribusiness or oil corporations getting bucks from federal subsidies, then money is going to the top. Hoorah for socialism. If it's single working mothers getting food stamps and housing credits, then money is going to the bottom. That's a damn government handout - we can't have that."

Why? Wouldn't they be consenting adults pursuing what makes them happy?

Speaking of Ken Rogoff as a former Chess Master and highly respected Professional Economist, it turns out he is not alone in that department.

Tyler Cowen, who now holds a chaired position in Economics at George Mason University is also one of the most influential and widely published economists in the US, reached a rating of 2350 and at age 15 was the youngest ever New Jersey State Champion. He is the author of 15 books and over 60 academic articles. His recent book "The Great Stagnation" has showed up twice on the New York Times best seller list.

At http://www.businessweek.com/magazin... is an interesting four page spread by businessweek about Cowen.

At http://www.gmu.edu/centers/publicch... you can view Tyler's web page, and at http://marginalrevolution.com/ is his popular blog marginal revolution.