Vice President talks about corporate responsibility during Iowa visit

During a speech this morning in Des Moines, Vice President Dick Cheney talked about corporate responsibility without answering questions about his own role as C-E-O of a Texas oil company. Cheney was C-E-O of Haliburton when accounting changes were made, and the S-E-C is investigating. During his Iowa visit, Cheney refused to speak with reporters about the controversy and stuck to his speech script in both Cedar Rapids and Des Moines. The speech did refer to the bill President Bush signed this morning that will crack down on corporate fraud.Cheney says the American people can be assured that “wrong-doers” in the business world will be prosecuted.Cheney says the Bush team is pursuing a “pro-growth” agenda. He says there’s still a great deal left to do on the economy, but says they are working in a position of strength. Cheney, who has a pacemaker, sat on a stool for this morning’s speech. Cheney said he has an Achilles tendon problem that flared up. He joked that it didn’t come from kicking democrats around.Cheney’s speech drew about five hundred folks who paid 250-dollars each as a contribution to Republican Congressional candidate Stan Thompson’s campaign.