Cheney Doesn't Care What You Think

Cheney: "Correct."

Raddatz: "Would you campaign for John McCain?"

Cheney: "John will be, I think, the nominee of our party, and I'll do everything I can to help him."

Raddatz: "Do you think he'll want your help?"

Cheney: "I don't have any idea at this stage."

More Cheney Terseness

Raddatz: "Can I do one more quick question that I forgot? Yesterday great reception with the troops [at Balad Air Force Base in Iraq]. I know you talked to several of the troops there. We followed you in that rope line, and just asked people who they were supporting for President. Several said Barack Obama. I said, but he wants to get out of Iraq right away. And they said, that's okay with me. These are the troops that you addressed yesterday themselves."

Cheney: "What's the question?"

Raddatz: "Any reaction to that?"

Cheney: "No."

Gotta Give Him Credit

One thing about Cheney: He is seldom accused of being ineffective. And these days it seems he is bending people to his will in Baghdad, as well as in Washington.

Consider the matter of Iraq's provincial elections legislation, which was passed by the Iraqi parliament but then vetoed by Adel Mahdi, one of Iraq's two vice presidents.

"I talked with him about that," Cheney told Raddatz. "I find that the best way to be effective there is to keep it private, so that they feel they can confide in me, and I can confide in them, and we can have a conversation, and neither one of us goes out and talks about it in public."