Cheney's trip a success

Vice President Dick Cheney is pleased with his recent trip to Iraq. That ought to make Congress really mad.

Too bad.

SHANNON, Ireland - Vice President Dick Cheney said Monday that he generally got good responses from Arab allies in his appeal for more help in stabilizing Iraq. He also said he recognizes that advancing the Israel-Palestinian peace process is a related issue that also must be addressed.

"You don't get to pick and choose," the vice president told reporters aboard his plane as he returned from a weeklong tour of the Middle East, including an unannounced two-day visit to Iraq and stops in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Jordan.

Of his meetings with rank-and-file U.S. troops in Iraq, Cheney said, "I thought they were amazingly positive. They believed in what they were doing."