Let Us Tell You How It Will Be

And you thought we got rid of the Royalists back in 1776. Boston Globe (05.28.06):

"The office of Vice President Dick Cheney routinely reviews pieces of legislation before they reach the president's desk, searching for provisions that Cheney believes would infringe on presidential power, according to former White House and Justice Department officials. The officials said Cheney's legal adviser and chief of staff, David Addington, is the Bush administration's leading architect of the 'signing statements' the president has appended to more than 750 laws. The statements assert the president's right to ignore the laws because they conflict with his interpretation of the Constitution." Cheney aide is screening legislation

Including, but by no means limited to "the option of bypassing a ban on torture, oversight provisions in the USA Patriot Act, and numerous requirements that they provide certain information to Congress, among other laws." "Using signing statements, the administration has challenged more laws than all previous administrations combined." This is why George has become "the first president since the 1800s who has never vetoed a bill". He never will, either. Why? Because if he ever did, Congress would have a chance to override. But by using signing statements like this, George can simply ignore Congress. Funny how that works, eh? People have fallen in line. "Knowing that Addington was likely to review the bills, other White House and Justice Department lawyers began vetting legislation with Addington's and Cheney's views in mind, according to another former lawyer in the Bush White House." "All these lawyers, he said, were extremely careful to flag any provision that placed limits on presidential power. "'You didn't want to miss something,' said the second former White House lawyer, who also asked not to be named." Or else. Is this unprecedented? Nope. "'In every administration, Democratic and Republican, there are officials with strongly held constitutional views, including somewhat idiosyncratic views,' said [Martin Lederman, who worked in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel]." On the other hand, "'(w)hat is new is that the extremely idiosyncratic and aggressive constitutional views are being adopted by the vice president and, therefore, by the administration.'" Make no bones about it. Shooter is a royalist. Washington Post (10.11.04):

"Since he took office, Vice President Cheney has led the Bush administration's effort to increase the power of the presidency. 'I have repeatedly seen an erosion of the powers and the ability of the president of the United States to do his job,' he said after a year in office, calling it 'wrong' for past presidents to yield to congressional demands. 'We are weaker today as an institution because of the unwise compromises that have been made over the last 30 to 35 years.'" In Cheney's Shadow, Counsel Pushes the Conservative Cause

And his go-to guy has been David, the most powerful man you've never heard of.