Has this been posted today?
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/08/26/the_cheney_presidency/The Cheney presidency
By Robert Kuttner | August 26, 2006
GEORGE W. BUSH has been faulted in some quarters for taking an extended
vacation while the Middle East festers. It doesn't much matter; the man
running the country is Vice President Dick Cheney.
When historians look back on the multiple assaults on our constitutional
system of government in this era, Cheney's unprecedented role will come in
for overdue notice. Cheney's shotgun mishap, when he accidentally sprayed
his host with birdshot, has gotten more media attention than has his control
of the government.
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If Cheney were the actual president, not just the de facto one, he simply
could not govern with the same set of policies and approval ratings of 20
percent. The media focuses relentless attention on the president, on the
premise that he is actually the chief executive. But for all intents and
purposes, Cheney is chief, and Bush is more in the ceremonial role of the
queen of England.