Cheneys Model Republican: More Limbaugh, Less Powell

WASHINGTON Former Vice President Dick Cheney said on Sunday that he preferred Rush Limbaughs brand of conservatism to former Secretary of State Colin L. Powells, saying Mr. Powell had abandoned the Republican Party when he endorsed Barack Obama for president last year.

Well, if I had to choose in terms of being a Republican, Id go with Rush Limbaugh, I think, Mr. Cheney said in an interview on Face the Nation on CBS. I think my take on it was Colin had already left the party. I didnt know he was still a Republican.

Mr. Cheney said he assumed Mr. Powells support of Mr. Obama over Senator John McCain was an indication of his loyalty and his interest. The endorsement, in a carefully timed and deliberate statement after Mr. McCain chose Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate in a move to fire up the partys conservative base, helped solidify Mr. Obamas campaign.

Mr. Powell, a retired chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, identified himself as a Republican only after retiring from the military. Last week, Mr. Powell said the Republican Party was in deep trouble and needed to find a way back to the middle of the political spectrum and away from polarizing leaders like Mr. Limbaugh and Ms. Palin.

His view, if not a new one, came after Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania switched to the Democratic Party and as Republicans debated where the heart of the party lay. In response, Mr. Limbaugh suggested that the moderate Mr. Powell should leave the party.

What Colin Powell needs to do is close the loop and become a Democrat, instead of claiming to be a Republican interested in reforming the Republican Party, Mr. Limbaugh said on his talk show.

Mr. Cheney has been a particularly fierce critic of the Obama administration and a defiant defender against critics of the Bush administration, including President Obama. While his remarks have been striking, they are not unusually outspoken by comparison, for example, to former Vice President Al Gores condemnations of the Bush administration when it held office.

Mr. Cheney said he did not want to drive moderates from the party, but did not want the party to move left.

I think there is room for moderates in the Republican Party, he said. I think partly its a semantic problem. I dont think the party ought to move dramatically to the left, for example, in order to try to redefine its base. We are what we are.