Cheney Says Unlikely He Would Comply with Congress Subpoena

By Agence France Presse

11/06/06 "AFP" -- -- US Vice President Dick Cheney said he would likely refuse to testify before Congress if he is faced with a subpoena from the opposition Democratic party.

The Democrats say if they prevail in Tuesday's legislative elections they may launch investigations into past actions taken by President George W. Bush's administration, possibly even issuing subpoenas to compel prominent officials to testify.

Asked in a television interview if he would testify before Congress if he received a subpoena from lawmakers however, Cheney said it was unlikely he would comply, as it would break with American political tradition.

"I have no idea that I'm going to be subpoenaed, and obviously, we'd sit down and look at it at the time," he told ABC's "This Week".

"But probably not, in the sense that the president and the vice president are constitutional officers and don't appear before the Congress," Cheney said.

Cheney, known for his robust view of the executive branch's power, said it was not customary for the president or vice president to be compelled to testify before a congressional committee.

"I think that's been the tradition. I can't think of the last time a president did appear before the Congress, or a vice president," Cheney said.

When reminded by the television interviewer that former president Gerald Ford testified before Congress in the 1970s, Cheney said that Ford had appeared voluntarily without a subpoena.

"He did. That's right. But not under subpoena. He did it on his own hook," Cheney said. "He wanted to explain the pardon" issued for ex-president Richard Nixon, who had resigned amid the Watergate scandal.

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