The fear of liberals who are aware that Dick Cheney is not just one of those vice-presidents who hangs around the Senate waiting for a tie.

It's not that he's a nanny for Dubya. Maybe vizier would be more accurate. In any case, Bush and Cheney are a team, and the leadership of the US would be significantly diminished were the veep to have a heart attack.

Don't get me wrong: George W. Bush is his own man, capable of making decisions. And he's got great advisors to tell him about those decisions. He went to Yale, you know.

But I do hope Dick Cheney stays healthy.