Signs of life

Mostly just a link to a transcript of an interview of Dick Cheney by CNN's Wolf Blitzer this morning, notable for Wolf doing a better than usual job of standing up to Cheney -- and having to take some fire from Cheney for it --

[CHENEY] What you're recommending, or at least what you seem to believe the right course is, is to bail out [of Iraq] --
Q I'm just asking questions.
VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: No, you're not asking questions ...
Q All right, there's a lot of good questions -- let's move on to some other domestic issues. The whole notion of your long-time aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby -- he's in the papers, his lawyer now suggesting on opening day of the trial that he was basically set up by people in the White House to protect Karl Rove, the President's political aide. What do you make of this?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Now, Wolf, you knew when we set up the interview you can ask all the questions you want, I'm going to be a witness in that trial within a matter of weeks, I'm not going to discuss it ...
Q We're out of time, but a couple of issues I want to raise with you. Your daughter Mary, she's pregnant. All of us are happy. She's going to have a baby. You're going to have another grandchild. Some of the -- some critics, though, are suggesting, for example, a statement from someone representing Focus on the Family:
"Mary Cheney's pregnancy raises the question of what's best for children. Just because it's possible to conceive a child outside of the relationship of a married mother and father, doesn't mean it's best for the child."
Do you want to respond to that?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: No, I don't.
Q She's obviously a good daughter --
THE VICE PRESIDENT: I'm delighted -- I'm delighted I'm about to have a sixth grandchild, Wolf, and obviously think the world of both of my daughters and all of my grandchildren. And I think, frankly, you're out of line with that question.
Q I think all of us appreciate --
THE VICE PRESIDENT: I think you're out of -- I think you're out of line with that question.

Cheney also laid down guidelines for adjectives that he won't accept about Iraq --

Q But there is a terrible situation [in Iraq].
THE VICE PRESIDENT: No, there is not. There is not. There's problems, ongoing problems, but we have, in fact, accomplished our objectives of getting rid of the old regime, and there is a new regime in place that's been there for less than a year, far too soon for you guys to write them off.

Finally, the unintended Spinal Tap moment --

One of the most dangerous jobs in the world is to be number three in the al Qaeda organization