STATEMENT OF BARBARA COMSTOCK, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGARDING THE DECISION IN WALKER V. CHENEY:

The following press release was published by the US Department of Justice on Dec. 9, 2002. It is reproduced in full below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MONDAY DECEMBER 9, 2002 WWW.USDOJ.GOV AG (202) 616-2777 TDD (202) 514-1888 "The Justice Department is pleased the Court has dismissed the lawsuit brought by the General Accounting Office (GAO). The Court's decision protects and respects the right of the President to have an independent decision-making process. Allowing the GAO to sue the Vice President without legal authority would improperly interfere with the President's ability to formulate the best possible policies for the American people.

"A year and a half ago, even before this unprecedented legal effort to intrude on executive deliberations, the Administration made public the product of those deliberations, the national energy plan. Over 36,000 supporting documents have been separately released." 02-703

Source: US Department of Justice