Liz Cheney Clashes With Eugene Robinson - Part 3 (HQ)

Updated 24 May, 2013, 9:34 am IST

Wednesday May 13 03:05 am

Liz Cheney Clashes With Eugene Robinson - Part 3 (HQ)

Part 3 of 5 Liz Cheney debates her father's claims with Eugene Robinson of The Washington Post, Mika Brzezinski, Mike Barnicle, Andrew Ross Sorkin and regular Willie Geist. MSNBC's Morning Joe (aired: 05/12/09). Mini-Bar Bio Elizabeth Cheney Perry (born July 28, 1966), graduated high school in 1984. She received her bachelor's degree from Colorado College where she wrote her senior thesis, "The Evolution of Presidential War Powers," in 1988. She received her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 1996, having also taken courses in Middle Eastern history at the Oriental Institute. Prior to attending law school, Cheney worked for the State Department for five years and the U.S. Agency for International Development between 1989 and 1993. After 1993, she took a job at Armitage Associates LLP, the consulting firm founded by Richard Armitage, then a former Defense Department official and Iran-Contra operative who later served as Deputy Secretary of State. In 2002, Cheney was appointed to the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs. a pre-existing vacant post with an "economic portfolio," which is a mandate to promote investment in the region. Amid reports, including a New York Times editorial by Paul Krugman,saying that the job was created especially for her, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said that she had come recommended by Colin Powell. After two years of service, Cheney left her first State Department post in 2003 to serve in her father's re-election campaign. In February 2005, she returned to the US State Department and was appointed the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State For Near Eastern Affairs and Coordinator for Broader Middle East and North Africa Initiatives. In this position, Cheney supported the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, C. David Welch, and coordinated U.S. multilateral efforts to promote and support democracy, expanded education and economic opportunities in the Middle East and Northern Africa. Her position made her the second-ranking U.S. diplomat for the Middle East. Cheney oversaw the launch of two semi-independent foundations, the Fund of the Future (worth $100 million, to provide capital for small businesses and the Foundation of the Future (worth $55 million), to promote freedom of the press and democracy. In that capacity, Cheney endorsed a controversial draft of a new Iraqi constitution. Elizabeth Cheney also headed the Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group (ISOG), established in March 2006, a unit within the State Department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. In April 2006, The New York Times published a story critical of Cheney's work, particularly with respect to Iran. Of particular scrutiny was a grants program administered by Elizabeth Cheney's unit, in collaboration with a Republican-affiliated foundation, the International Republican Institute. The Times maintained that when the group became controversial, attracting criticism from some who saw it as plotting covert actions that could escalate into war with Iran and Syria, the group was disbanded, by May of 2006. Shortly before the ISOG group was dissolved, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice initiated a major effort to engage Iran and Syria in efforts to stabilize Iraq. Cheney signed on in June 2007 to serve as one of three national co-chairs for Fred Thompson and his 2008 presidential campaign. The other co-chairs were Spencer Abraham and George Allen. In a press release issued at the beginning of his campaign, Thompson said he was "very pleased to announce that former Senators Abraham and Allen, as well as Liz Cheney, will serve as co-chairs of my national leadership team." Sen. Fred Thompson added "These distinguished individuals bring wise counsel and invaluable experience to my campaign leadership team, and they will play a critical role in helping spread my consistent conservative message across America." After Thompson dropped out of the race, Cheney announced on January 27, 2008 that she would work for Mitt Romney's presidential campaign, serving as a senior foreign policy advisor.