Bylimet Spiritwalker
09-21-2008, 12:32 PM
VP Cheney ordered to preserve records
Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 09/20/2008 04:59:31 PM CDT
WASHINGTON — A federal judge today ordered Dick Cheney to preserve a wide range of the records from his time as vice president.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly is a setback for the Bush administration in its effort to promote a narrow definition of materials that must be safeguarded under by the Presidential Records Act.
The Bush administration's legal position "heightens the court's concern" that some records may not be preserved, said the judge.
A private group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, is suing Cheney and the Executive Office of the President in an effort to ensure that no presidential records are destroyed or handled in a way that makes them unavailable to the public.
In a 22-page opinion, the judge revealed that in recent days, lawyers for the Bush administration balked at a proposed agreement between the two sides on how to proceed with the case.
The administration, said the judge, wanted any court order on what records are at issue in the case to cover only the office of the vice president, not Cheney or the other defendants in the lawsuit. The other defendants are the Executive Office of the President and the National Archives.
The lawsuit stems from Cheney's position that his office is not part of the executive branch of government.
The lawsuit alleges that the Bush administration's actions over the past 7 1/2 years raise questions over whether the White House will turn over
records created by Cheney and his staff to the National Archives in January. In 2003, Cheney asserted that the office of the vice president is not an entity within the executive branch.
Two historians and three groups of historians and archivists joined CREW in filing the suit two weeks ago.
Any vBookie odds on whether Cheney will simply sneer and do as he pleases, knowing Dubya will protect him?
The purpose of the order is to prevent Cheney and his staff from destroying any materials, due to the Cheney position that only specific materials need be preserved.
Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 09/20/2008 04:59:31 PM CDT
WASHINGTON — A federal judge today ordered Dick Cheney to preserve a wide range of the records from his time as vice president.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly is a setback for the Bush administration in its effort to promote a narrow definition of materials that must be safeguarded under by the Presidential Records Act.
The Bush administration's legal position "heightens the court's concern" that some records may not be preserved, said the judge.
A private group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, is suing Cheney and the Executive Office of the President in an effort to ensure that no presidential records are destroyed or handled in a way that makes them unavailable to the public.
In a 22-page opinion, the judge revealed that in recent days, lawyers for the Bush administration balked at a proposed agreement between the two sides on how to proceed with the case.
The administration, said the judge, wanted any court order on what records are at issue in the case to cover only the office of the vice president, not Cheney or the other defendants in the lawsuit. The other defendants are the Executive Office of the President and the National Archives.
The lawsuit stems from Cheney's position that his office is not part of the executive branch of government.
The lawsuit alleges that the Bush administration's actions over the past 7 1/2 years raise questions over whether the White House will turn over
records created by Cheney and his staff to the National Archives in January. In 2003, Cheney asserted that the office of the vice president is not an entity within the executive branch.
Two historians and three groups of historians and archivists joined CREW in filing the suit two weeks ago.
Any vBookie odds on whether Cheney will simply sneer and do as he pleases, knowing Dubya will protect him?
The purpose of the order is to prevent Cheney and his staff from destroying any materials, due to the Cheney position that only specific materials need be preserved.