cheap shots he's taking at me and other members of the administration who served to the best of our ability. he says i went out of my way not to present my position to the president but take them outside of the administration. that's nonsense. >> sean: we are honored to have former vice president cheney with us for the hour. thank you for being with us. >> sean, it is great to be here. [ applause ] >> sean: were you surprised at collin powell's comments? >> i was a bit. because it is clear that if he read in the book, he only read a part of it. there's a lot of time devoted in the first half of the book to my early career going back to my early days growing up. then also three chapters on my time in the defense department. where general powell was chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. i got him appointed at the post and we worked together closely and successfully, i think through desert storm and the break up of the soviet union and did some good work together. by the time we got to me being in the vice president and he was secretary of state obviously the relationship had grown somewhat strained. >> sean: you wrote powell was disdainful and not supportive of the president's policies. you said he personally confirmed the information when he went before the united nations and made the case about wmd that he went out of his way to confirm the information because he didn't accept it on face value. >> that's true. he spent a lot of time working, putting together that presentation with personnel from the cia. and then had george tenet accompany him for the presentation to the united nations. turned out obviously, a lot of it wasn't true. >> sean: you go into this in some detail. you said that the president was, as he was making that z he turned to george tenet, how good is the intel on wmd? his answer? >> george's answer in a meeting in the oval office was it is a slam-dunk mr. president. we can go back and argue about intelligence and it is a tough business. got a lot of sympathy for the problems the community is faced with. it would be nice if it were all meat packaged. but it rarely is. this was a case obviously where it was some of it was flawed. >> sean: you think a lot of this comes from, especially as it relates to colin powell, i was a little surprised, thought it was a little rude he kept saying mr. cheney, rather than mr. vice president, but secretary powell. take that as a slight on his part? >> no. this isn't a book to defame colin powell. the president has written a book many secretary rumsfeld has written a book, george tenet, condi rice is writing a book. this is my contribution. and i wanted to record, if i can put it in those terms for my kids and grandkids, what it is i spent my career doing over the last 40 years. how i did it and why. the kinds of decisions that i participated in. and that's the basic thrust of the book. it is a broad gauge. it does cover 70 years of my life. i think it is a good book. >> sean: i do too. one last question on colin powell. you write that powell felt embarrassed as it relates to the presentation before the united nations. and he went out there wrongly, and that caused him to lash out at others. in retrospect, knowing what we know now does that change your opinion about saddam hussein, about iraq, about whether or not this was the right thing to do and whether or not the world is better off? >> it doesn't sean. partly because the sort of shorthand that says we didn't find any wmd. if you go back and look at the report of the iraq survey group that was put together by the experts that went in, surveyed, spend a couple of years looking at all the information that was available. while they didn't find stockpiles they did fan a government that had the capacity to go back that production of weapons of mass destruction. and the -- had the basic raw terms had the personnel and technical know how. there was every reason to believe that's what saddam hussein would do as soon as the sanctions were lifted that the international community tried time pose on him. the facts are, to say that there were no stockpiles, that's accurate. to say there was no wmdt all or no interest or threat from it is not accurate. there was a significant threat that existed. >> sean: i want to ask you one question. you were forthcoming in wyoming, by the way, beautiful place to live, i love jock son hole, about your health. -- i love jackson hole, about your health. you've had five heart attacks, a bypass operation, you had a tough run of it about a year ago. where are you -- you have this machine, tell us about -- where you stand and how is your heart doing? >> i've had -- i've been a victim if you will of coronary artery disease since my 30s. had my first heart attack when i was 37-years-old in june of last year, 20 went into end stage heart failure. my heart was unable to supply an adequate amount of blood to my kidneys, lives, so forth. as a result of that disease at that stage, we did an operation that involve wad is called a heart pump a ventricle assist device pump that ties into the bottom of the heart, small operates several thousand rpm's battery powered that supplements the heart. it moves blood through your system and restores the normal flow to your kidneys and liver. >> sean: do you feel the same? >> much better than i did before. this is the battery. there's a control element here. and another battery here. i like to do this. >> sean: you do that to scare people. >> it beeps when you take it apart. >> sean: put the battery back, thank you. >> it is wonderful technology. it was originally designed as a temporary measure but increasingly people are living with them for a period of years. so it was intended as a transition, if you will to a heart transplant until you could get a heart. at this stage, i haven't made a decision whether or not i want to go the transplant route. but i've now had this device implanted in my chest now for about 13 months. it has been magnificent. i'm back doing all of those things i wanted to do before i got sick. fish, hunt, write books. i'm traveling extensively now. >> sean: and you are dealing with the liberal media. are you on any heart transplant list? this used to be the transition device. >> it used to be the transitional device. i haven't described in great detail the position i'm in from the standpoint of discussion with my doctors. >> sean: okay you want to keep that private. >> i want to keep some of it private. >> sean: you just took off the battery that's close enough. >> i could other things i could show you sean. >> sean: i feel like joe lieberman or john edwards in the debate even chris matthews you wrote about in the book what he said. we'll talk about that and more. also, why vice president cheney says condoleeza rice's controversial apology about iraq wmd's never should have been issued. that and more, straight ahead. ♪ [ male announcer ] the super bowl. the most epic day in america. and the end of a journey that began here, when the swipe of a visa card gave one man a chance to bring happiness to ten friends... and humiliation to one. if you wanthis ticket, i need you to wear this helmet. i'm not gonna do it. i'm not gonna do it. i'm not gonna do it. 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[ male announcer ] with efficient i.t. solutions from dell, doug can shift up to 50% of his company's technology spend from operating costs to innovation. so his company runs better, and so does doug. dell. the power to do more. a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually se arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammatio plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. a celebrex is not a narcotic. when it comes to relieving your arthritis pain, you and your doctor need to balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naen, and melocam have the same cardiovascar warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart dease or risk factors such as high blo pressure or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, including celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions or stomach anintestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. do not take celebrex if you'v had an asthma attack, hives, oother allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. >> sean: welcome back to this special edition of hannity. tonight joined by the former vice president of the united states dick any and his new book -- in his new book hex takes us behind the scenes of the bush presidency detailing his contentious relationship with condoleeza rice who served as national security adviser and later as secretary of state. at one point he talks about 16 words of the 2002 state of the union address that describe add attempt by saddam hussein to acquire yellow cake uranium in africa in jewel of 2003 dr. rice apologized in his memoir vice president cheney describes the disastrous affects of that apology. continuing to talk about that and more dick cheney. those 16 words, joe wilson, valerie plame became a big issue. at one point you described that condoleeza rice came into your office, used the word teary-eyed and apologized for the apology. am i getting that right? >> she came in and said i had been right when i argued against making a public apology tort inclusion of the 16 words in the state of the union address. i didn't mean to single out or pick on secretary rice at all. it was a lesson in i felt in terms of how you shouldn't proceed under those circumstances. the fact of the matter was the brits said it was a true statement. it was their statement, the president quoted the british. when they canned it and said yes this is true. saddam did had representatives that went to niger seeking yellow cake from their government. the problem was u once awe apologize for it, which is what happened in this case, it started a feeding frenzy. the press went wild. then there was the great manhunt to find who was responsible for putting those lines in the president's speech as though it was not true. it became part of the notion that somehow the president lied about what we found with respect to iraq. because that statement was in his state of the union speech. it was a true, accurate statement. >> sean: still to this day confirmed by british intelligence. >> never changed. in fed into the effort to -- this fed into the effort to claim that my office and/or others karl rove for example, scooter libby was my top guy who they had been involved, or charged in effect unfairly, as having leaked information about joe wilson's wife. it turned out the leak was rich armitage at the state department deputy secretary of defense. it lead to a long two year investigation that was enormously pain tpourl a lot of people. >> condi said we would not have put in the speech if we had known now -- if we knew now what we knew. that was you found it was devastating to the administration. then it became bush lied, people died, we went to war. >> it set off this firestorm we had to live with for the next couple of years. >> sean: patrick fitzgerald, the special prosecutor, knew from day one that the leak came from richard armitage. then it brings us back to colin powell again. you describe a meeting at this point where armitage knew that he was the guy. powell knew that he was the guy. and should that investigation at that moment have stopped, ended right there? >> i think the right response, remembering again that the thing that started the investigation requested by the cia justice department was in fact this issue of who was responsible for the leak the cia employees name to the press. once they knew it was armitage and fitzgerald knew that before he started his investigation. the justice department knew it before fitzgerald came onboard that should have been the end. it want. it was drug out over a long period of time. dozens hauled before the grand jury. it created enormous problems for us. there was a point at which, i think october 7th, i believe of 2003 there was a cabinet meeting. as the press came in after the meeting to take pictures, normal photo-op. they asked the president questions about this issue. who was responsible for the leak. he said he didn't know, but he wanted to find out. the person who knew was sitting next to him, colin powell. colin knew at that point, because rich armitage told him a week before that mr. armitage was the source of the leak. but of course, none of that ever came out until much later, after the damage had been done. people's reputations had been badly sullied. people had to spend money on lawyers because it was targeted on this investigation that was -- >> sean: why would they not speak up knowing that not only scooter libby, karl rove, if reports are correct, came close to indictment, within hours we are told. a lot of people, a lot of staff members had to spend tens of thousands of dollars to hire attorneys>kov and fight this when we knew who the leaker was in the beginning and fitzgerald's question wass>n answered. >> we didn't know that. armitage knew. >> sean: does that anger you? apparently one of biggest arguments that you ever had with president bush was over scooter libby. now we know in hindsight they knew, does that anger you? >> yes. >> sean: it does. why? >> because i thought it contributed to a terrible environment into which people's reputations were unnecessarily sullied. and which provided the opportunity for the justice department in this case special prosecutor to go forward with this massive investigation that cost the government a lot of money and cost private citizens employees of the federal government, you have to pay for your own legal fees when it is a criminal case. money for legal advice. i was questioned several times. >> sean: i know you wanted a full pardon for scooter. and you asked the president. according to reports on numerous occasions. and you guys had a close relationship. you say a lot of nice things about the president in this book. tell us how that conversation went. >> i explain in my book that as we got to the end of the administration, that the president had in fact altered scooter's sentence. >> sean: he commuted it. >> commuted it. but nonetheless, i thought it was appropriate there be a pardon. scooter be pardoned. the president disagreed. he's the one who had to make the decision. the tail end of the administration the last week we were in office he decided there wouldn't be any more pardons that meant there wasn't going to be a pardon for scooter. i disagreed with that. i still disagree with it. official, i have a lot of respect for the president. i'm delighted he gave me the opportunity to serve. we had our disagreements and this was one of them. >> sean: how hard did you push? >> there was no question, but it was his call. there was no question that i thought he should have made a different decision. i was forthright in expressing my view point. >> sean: more with vice president cheney right after the break. 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>> this one was in the small office next to the oval office where we used to eat lunch once a week where the president had lunch just about everyday. this was at the last meeting of eight year's worth of meetings where the two of us would sit down alone and talk about whatever was on his mind or my mind. those were great, important sessions. this was one obviously that took place under this cloud. at that meeting he informed me there weren't going to be any more pardons. i thought he thoroughly deserved one. i thought he was innocent who had been badly treated. >> sean: that's a harsh word. i think we both know how deeply the president feels about people that have put their lives on the line. i've seen him with the families of the fallen. was it contentious? was there yelling? >> no, it was -- there was tension in the room, i would say. he felt strongly about it. i felt strongly about it. short time later we went to andrews air force base on our last day in office after we had sworn in president obama and so forth and we flew out to andrews. at andrews we had sort of a departure ceremony where we had people who worked for us for eight years gather together in a hangar. and i introduced the president and said nice things about him. we did a joint departure ceremony, if you will. he go on the plane and flew back to texas. and we went back to wyoming. it was done professionally. i've got a lot of respect for george bush. i was delighted to work for him many honored to be asked. please that he gave me tremendous opportunities to serve. as i say, he made many courageous decisions as president. i had hoped this would be one. but unfortunately, it hasn't. >> sean: you suggested to president bush that he replace you midway in 2004? >> i did. i thought it was important to think about it. we'd been through the experience with his father, something he talked about previously. where as we approached the '92 election and his father was running for reelection. the question was whether or not he should have gotten a new vice president. not to say anything negative about dan quayle. that's one of the few things a candidate can do. i thought it was very important that he think about that. after four years, i was a target for a lot of my critics, darth vader and so forth. >> sean: still are. >> still. and i fought it should be a conscious decision. i wanted -- i thought it should be a conscious decision. i wanted him to know if he made a decision to have somebody else in the job for a second term it was fine with me. >> sean: how did that go over? >> first couple of times he didn't pay a lot of attention. the third time i said mr. president you really need to think about this. i'm happy to continue to serve if that's what you want but you need to know that i'm perfectly happy to leave and make room for somebody else. he thought about it for a few days. came back and said no dick, he said it is a great team and we are going to continue, as we have. i was glad he picked me. i was also glad that he felt -- i felt he had the opportunity to make a change if he wanted. >> sean: in one of the interviews that you recently gave, i guess the liberal media, you know how they work. he felt they were trying to put a wedge between you and president bush or for you to take over and say no i made these decisions. you kept going back again and again, even in the scooter libby decision on every other decision there was a moment where were you alone with the president where he said dick you stay. and he wanted your opinion. you said no, these were his decisions. what do you think of his ability what do you think of his presidency? how will history judge the presidency of george w. bush with you being his vice president? >> i think set me aside for a moment, administrations don't rise or fall in or the estimate of historians based on the vice president, not ordinarily. pretty rare occurrence. i think when you look at judge bush's presidency you will find, 100 years from now we will look back and see that it was a very consequential presidency. had a big impact. partly because of 9/11 and the aftermath because of all that we did to keep the country safe in the 7 1/2 years after so there were no further mass casualty attacks again the united states. the president made some big decisions like the terror surveillance program. the enhanced interrogation program. the decisions with respect to afghanistan and iraq. these were life and death decisions really. i think as a direct result of what he did as president, we got through that period in relatively good shape, as you look back now. i think he was a bold, decisive leader and i give him a lot of credit for the quality, if you will, of his presidential leadership. >> sean: we'll take a break. how vice president cheney convinced the president to include one important word in a pivotal speech on iraq one that the other chief advisers didn't want him to say. that and more, straight ahead. 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[ male announcer ] as you wish, business pro. as you wish. go national. go like a pro. now through january earn a free day with every two rentals. find out more at nationalcar.com. >> sean: welcome back. former vice president cheney's controversial memoir hit the shelves earlier this week. it includes details on a 2006 oval office meeting that took place before a joint press conference held by president bush and british prime minister blair. in that meeting the vice president says several top aides advised that the word victory be removed from the president's remarks on iraq. however, the vice president spoke up and described bluntly the symbolism and importance of that word. a few short hours later when president bush took to the microphones he sided with the vice president saying victory in iraq is important. we continue in studio. joining us is the vice president dick cheney. tell us, that is an interesting meeting. >> it was an interesting meeting. it was preparer to to this join press conference that the president held with tony blair. -- it is not unusual that staff people argue about what ought to go into a presidential speech. i didn't spend that much time on the president's speeches because he devoted so much time to it himself. he cared a lot and worked very hard. every once in a while i would be asked or something would come up. in this case i was concerned the word victory had been left out about remarks on iraq and afghanistan. part of it was my educational process as secretary of defense. having been in charge of the defense department through "desert storm." the troops want to know what the mission is. they want to know they are supported -- in terms of the civilian leadership and the military leadership. they want to know they are going to have resources they need to do the job. what they don't need is any question, if you will or doubt coming out of washington. out of the political establishment about whether or not their mission is to chief victory in whatever assignment they've been given. >> sean: this became very controversial. it begs the question that since the time that you've left office and president bush has left, president obama seems to have had a hard time using the word terrorism or war on terrorism, man caused disasters comes to mind. overseas contingency operation comes to mind. what do you make of -- he went on this apology tour. as you saw these events unfold, what were you thinking? >> i obviously disagree with. >> -- with president obama on a number of issues. i did not support him when he ran for president. >> sean: i'm shocked. >> i felt after he took over, that it was a mistake for him to immediately launch on a campaign to try to close guantanamo and shutdown our interrogation program and dramatically reduce our presence in various places where we had difficult assignments that the military had undertaken. >> sean: do you think he projects weakness? >> i think he did in those early days? there was a tendancy on his part to want to apologize for america being america. when we talked about the unique aspects of our history, exceptionalism of the united states of america. that has very special meaning and significance i think for most of us. i wasn't sure the president shared that same view. >> sean: he said i'm sure everyone else feels exceptional as well. i was watching the operation in libya. i almost began to wonder if he supported the bush doctrine, the idea of preemption. that was the argument they used in support of their policy in libya which he then backed away from then he supported it later. does that mean anything to you? >> he has in some respects retreated from those positions he took early on in the first weeks of his administration. guantanamo is still open, still have military commissions for trying terrorism suspects and so forth. you have to give him credit for the operation to get bin laden. there was a lot of work that went that that. professionals in the intelligence and military community had done tremendous work for 10 years. >> sean: we have to be clear. would that have happened but for inlanced inter-- enhanced interrogation, rendition, black sites, the policies he called torture? >> i don't believe it would have. but that's one man's view. leon panetta said that he believed that some of the intelligence we collected by those methods from the earlier period while we were still in office contributed to the ability to track down bin laden and finally kill him. but i think at the time that it happened i made a public statement saying that i thought president obama handled it well. that he made a good decision to send in seal team 6 and they'd done obviously a good job in terms of completing the assignment. i don't want to convey a totally negative message where president obama is concerned in this regard. but i do feel i wished especially in the thing that concerned me was when there was talk about the possibility of prosecuting members of the intelligence community who had been involved in carrying out our policies, in the pursuit of keeping the country safe. at the outset the president and his attorney general talked about doing exactly that. now, they backed off. i think there were only two left whose cases are being reviewed. all of the others had been reviewed before we left office. i think they've now dropped their intentions to do that i thought it was a terrible precedent to set. to say to our career professionals at the cia if you carry out the policies of the current administration, with respect to counterterrorism policy, you may be prosecuted by the next president who comes in and wants to change the rules of the game. that's a terrible proposition. >> sean: we'll continue with vice president cheney right after the break. 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>> i think the economy is clearly going to be a major problem for him going into this election campaign. i think the american people recognize that the policies that he promoted when he first came to office, idea of a stimulus package and so forth haven't produced any significant results. we've got a high rate of unemployment. millions of americans out of work. who badly need to find jobs. we need to adopt aggressive growth policy that promotes expansion in the private sector creation of wealth, jobs, opportunities for people. so far he hasn't been able to provide that. >> sean: what do you think every time you hear the president blame the bush administration, blame his predecessor. the latest is about the arab spring is a big cause of the economy not turning around and the tsunami and the earthquake in japan. he blames a lot. and you and president bush seem to be the target a lot. as you hear that what are you thinking? >> it sounds like politics as usual. i think it doesn't wear well over time. certainly there's room when you are running for office to make charges again the incumbent that's the way we often do business. it has been nearly three years. whatever you can say about this economy it is increasingly his economy, his responsibility. if it is not producing results that he says he wants, then i think most americans want, then you have to look to the current occupy pan in the white house, not the last one. -- occupant in the white house, not the last one. >> sean: we found a clip, july 3rd, 2008. it was candidate obama. he said george bush and his lonesome in eight years accumulated four trillion in debt he said it was unpatriotic. now he's been president 2 1/2 years and lo and behold he hit that four trillion in obama debt in that short period of time. do you think he's in over his head? did you think he was ready for this job? do you think he understands the economy as you watch him make decisions? you have been there since your 30s in washington. and you've held many positions. chief of staff, vice president, secretary of defense. when you look at the president, watch him make his moves, what do you think about him? >> i was surprised. i remember going out to campaign for his opponent when he first ran for the senate. his opponent withdrew from the race jack ryan. he ended up virtually unopposed in that senate race. alan keyes came in token opposition. i swore him in one of the jobs of the vice president to swear in new senators. next thing i knew he was running for president. he had not served very lodge, not even a term in the united states senate. his experience before that was focused on the state legislature in illinois. i didn't see the kind of executive experience or national level experience that i would have expected in somebody i was comfortable supporting for president. obviously, i supported john mccain, i didn't support barack obama. but i think my assessment of it as i look at it today, is he didn't bring to office the kind of experience that i would have hoped to have seen in a new president. >> sean: do you think he's failed in his job as president, what grade would you gi+ñ=b him? do you think he has failed in his job? >> in fairness, the jury is still out until he's gotten closer to the election. he has another year to run in terms of his current assessment. >> sean: midterm grade up to this point? >> i think of it as whether or not he's going to end up like ronald reagan did with a masterful performance and implementing a very successful growth policy. things look tough in his third year by the fourth year he won an overwhelming victory or like jimmy carter who never quite got his act together to put in place an economic program for the country. when he was faced with competition four years after his first term, he obviously didn't do very well. >> sean: when we come back our final installment of my sit-down with former vice president cheney. straight ahead. 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[ >> sean: welcome back to a special hour with the former vice president of the united states dick cheney. interesting tidbits i asked you about this in our interview. when you were being selected as vice president, you put a lot of emphasis, you sat with the president. then governor bush and karl rove and may the case why you shouldn't be vice president. you kept saying over and over i want you to know i'm a real conservative. and you also talk in this book, you reflect on your entire life all these years in service. then you talk about your grandkids. you even got the jonas brothers used the power of that office and influence to get the jonas brothers for them. as you reflect on the long decades of service to your country, what warnings, concerns do you have for your country? you have been there probably more than any other person in the public arena today. what do you fear about the future for those kids? >> like a lot of people, have mixed views to some extent. i'm enormously proud to be an american. and to have had the opportunity to serve. i think the potential is virtually unlimited in terms of the future of this nation and what we can accomplish and achieve. by the same token i'm concerned about the problems we see today. this long term debt problem is important. i sense also that it is important that we not as we try to deal with those deficit problems, lose sight of the importance of maintaining our nation's security. i think that is our number one obligation and responsibility as a government. i worry in this rush to get our deficit problem solved, which is very important that we will end up in a situation where the defense department in effect bears the burden rather than the domestic side of the house. i think that would be unfortunate. but i think the next generation will have opportunities to do things we haven't even dreamed of yet. i think in part, it is up to us, our generation to pass on the nation to them in as good a shape as it was passed on to us. >> sean: we are not doing it are we? >> we haven't done it yet. we have problems to be resolved in the next few years. >> sean: during the break i was kidding with your daughter liz. she said he could have been harder on president obama. if he gets a second term and he continues these policies, does america risk recovering? do we risk what is happening in europe, great britain, greece, ireland, portugal and spain, does that come to america? >> i worry very much about another term. i think it would be unfortunate, unfortunately i'm a conservative republican. i believe deeply in the free market that made america great. this administration appears to think only in terms of government or what government can do. we haven't seen the kind of emphasis on growing the private sector that i think is essential. so i'm -- i don't want you to think i've become a convert to supporting president obama. >> sean: what is your proudest accomplishment? >> one of things i feel best about sean is that we were able on our watch, to keep the nation safe after 9/11. we were able to keep those 7 1/2 years that we were still in office, without another major attack again the united states. i think that was a tremendous success. i don't think anybody would have believed that was possible the morning after 9/11. but in fact, because of the president's leadership, because of the magnificent capability of our men and women in uniform, because of our intelligence activities, some very bold decisions, we succeeded in doing something that looked like it was going to be impossible in those early days when the smoke was still rising over the pentagon and world trade center. >> sean: mr. vice president, thank you. appreciate it. >> thank you sean. [ applause ] >> sean: thank you for being with us. i hope you have a great night. i hope you have a great night. [ applause ] closed captioned by closed captioning services, inc.