Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune

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UPDATE: The Washington Post reports that some Republicans are not happy about Dick Cheney’s blasts a day (going after the Obama administration, saying the country is less safe, saying Rush Limbaugh is more of a Republican than Colin Powell and basically suggesting that moderates who share Powell’s views should take a hike from the GOP):

Cheney entered the arena this winter in a politically weak position after that election. His personal favorability ratings were and are still low. A Gallup poll in late March found that 30 percent of respondents gave him a favorable rating, while 63 percent rated him unfavorably.

That is why his high-profile defense of controversial Bush administration policies has caused queasiness among Republican political strategists. But Cheney remains powerful enough that most of his GOP critics are not willing to take him on in public. “The fact that most people want to talk [without attribution] shows what a problem it continues to be,” said one Republican strategist who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to be candid. “Cheney continues to be a force among many members of our base, and while he is entirely unhelpful, no one has the standing to show him the door.”

AND:

Another GOP strategist, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity, pointed out the conundrum for Republicans over the former vice president’s current role. “Even if he’s right, he’s absolutely the wrong messenger,” this strategist said. His main worry, he added, is that Cheney keeps the public focused on the past, rather than the future. “We want Bush to be a very distant memory in the next election. The more Cheney is on the front burner, the more difficult it’s going to be.”

“He’s perfectly entitled to make his case, and given that Dick Cheney is as popular as Britney Spears at a Sunday school teacher convention, we hope he continues to be the face of the Republican Party,” said Hari Sevugan, national press secretary for the Democratic National Committee. “His continued presence reminds people that the GOP is unwilling to put forward new ideas or leadership, and so long as he continues to be the voice of the Republican cause, he ensures that the Republican Party will remain the party of the past.”

The bottom line: Cheneys followers, admirers and defenders are usually conservative Republicans and not those who would generally be considered to be moderates or independent voters. He’s preaching to his conservative Republican affiliated or conservative Republican leaning choir but risks chasing others away from joining the GOP political church — which needs to get more members to compete with the newly expanded Democratic political church down the street.
–Joe Gandelman