Liz Cheney Speaks Out

The political world is all abuzz about Liz Cheney's appearance on MSNBC, last week. In an interview with Norah O'Donnell, she defended her father, former Vice President, Dick Cheney, former Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, and the Bush Administration's interrogation tactics and claimed they brought about valuable intelligence. Cheney explained that memos on the matter expressed that it was important not to cross a line into torture and that everything that was done is often used on Americans for training purposes. Cheney also defended her father's legacy and spoke about the future of the Republican Party, but it was her willingness to stand up to the more-often-than-not biased reporter's accusations and asinine assumptions that have some blogs and websites posting headlines such as "Cheney '12" as headlines for the interview. You can watch the video here:

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About Liz Cheney:

While most people know Liz Cheney as the oldest daughter of the former Vice President, they probably don't realize that Cheney served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State during the Bush Administration, that she is an attorney, or that she is the mother of five children.

Elizabeth Cheney Perry was born in 1966. She attended Colorado College and graduated from the University of Chicago Law School in 1996. Between college and attending law school, Cheney worked at the State Department and the consulting firm, Armitage Associates LLP. After law school, she practiced law privately for the firm White and Case, worked as international law attorney, a consultant at the International Finance Corporation, served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State for Assistant to the former Soviet Union, and as a USAID officer in U.S. embassies in Budapest and Warsaw.

In 2002, she would be appointed to the position of Deputy Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs but the appointment was not without controversy. Many claimed the position was created just for the daughter of the Vice President, but the State Department claimed she had been recommended by Colin Powell and that the position was just vacant at the time of her appointment. The London Times saw her appointment as "America is getting serious about Middle East Reform." As Deputy, Cheney was given control of the Middle East Partnership Initiative which was put in place to help create democracy and economic progress in the Middle East. Cheney left this position after two years to work for President George Bush's re-election campaign, often speaking to women voters, but would return to the U.S State Department in 2005. During that time, she oversaw the launch of Fund of the Future (a foundation that provides capital for small businesses) and Foundation of the Future (a group that promotes freedom of the press and democracy).

Since the Bush Administration left office, Cheney has continued her busy career in politics. In 2007, she worked as a co-chair for Senator Fred Thompson's Presidential campaign, and later went on to work for Governor Mitt Romney when Thompson dropped out of the race. That year, she also wrote a big editorial for the Washington Post, criticizing Hillary Clinton's position on the war in Iraq. She also speaks publicly about international relations and the role of women in democracy and has been rumored to be helping her father research for a book about his work in public service.

Liz Cheney is married to Philip Perry, the former General Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security. The couple have five children: Kate, Elizabeth, Grace, Philip, and Richard.