...``Cheney's brief, all in all, encompassed most of the core concerns of any president,'' Gellman writes.
``Angler'' reads like a series of detailed case studies, and Cheney emerges as a savvy, sometimes vengeful master of the Washington game -- a man who used his influence to redefine the U.S. presidency, giving it powers that most constitutional experts denied it had.
Wiretaps Without Warrants
An early test came with a directive Addington drafted after the Sept. 11 attacks. The document asserted the president's authority to sanction warrantless wiretaps on U.S. citizens.
Three years later, this program led to a showdown, grippingly described by Gellman, at the hospital bedside of then-Attorney General John Ashcroft. It ended after a resignation threat by FBI Director Robert Mueller and several top Justice Department officials prompted a startled Bush to reverse his decision by giving the attorney general the right to certify wiretap requests.
Unlike other reporters, Gellman doesn't argue that Cheney usurped the presidency outright. He tells of times when, as he puts it, Bush grabbed back the steering wheel....
