Saturday, July 21, 2007
CAMP DAVID, Md. … President Bush transferred the powers of his office to Vice President Dick Cheney for more than two hours Saturday while under sedation for a colon cancer screening.
Doctors removed five small polyps during the procedure at Camp David.
"None appeared worrisome," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said. Polyps are precancerous growths in the colon.All the polyps were less than a centimeter and were sent for microscopic examination to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Results were expected within 72 hours.The colonoscopy lasted 31 minutes.
The transfer of power from Bush to Cheney covered two hours and five minutes.The president invoked Section 3 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution "out of an abundance of caution," Stanzel said. The amendment, approved in 1967, four years after President Kennedy was assassinated, had been used only twice before.
At 7:16 a.m. EDT, Bush invoked the disability clause and transferred his authority to Cheney. The vice president was at his home on the Chesapeake Bay in St. Michaels, Md., about 30 miles east of Washington.
The Vice-President spent the morning using his new authorization of Presidential powers to grant a full pardon to former aide, Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Additionally, Cheney granted full Presidential pardons to former Enron executives, Andrew Fastow and Jeffrey Skilling, former Adlephia CEO, John Rigas, former World Com CEO, Bernie Ebbers, former Tyco Industries CEO, Dennis Kozlowski and Martha Stewart.
Cheney said he was not concerned with a backlash from the Congress.
"To hell with them," Cheney said with a gruff laugh, "If they want to bitch, I'll give them something to bitch about."
Bush reclaimed his presidential powers and duties at 9:21 a.m. EDT.
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