How They Treat Their Friends

Last night on The Daily Show, Barton Gellman, author of "Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency" spoke (16:25) about interviewing Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX) for the book. Armey had opposed the Iraq invasion. Cheney took him aside before the Iraq War Resolution vote and told him that the threat from Saddam Hussein was even greater than the Bush administration's alarmist public rhetoric suggested.

He told Armey two things that the vice president never said in public. According to Angler, that “Saddam personally, and his family, had direct ties with al Qaida,” and “Iraq was making substantial progress towards a miniature nuclear weapon.” Both statements proved false. But at the time, they convinced Armey to relent and vote with the administration.

Armey is “a very angry man at this point.” Gellman said the Texas Republican told him, “I deserve better than to be bullshitted by the vice president.”

If this is how top leadership treats its closest allies to get votes, one wonders what would the McCain/Palin campaign team – essentially, Bush/Cheney’s campaign team – do to get yours?

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