Cheney denies violating civil liberties

As the Bush administration enters its last weeks in office, Vice President Dick Cheney has been defending decisions made while he has been in the White House.

Speaking on CBS’ Face the Nation, Cheney told host Bob Schieffer that decisions made by the National Security Agency, CIA and president reflect "one of the great success stories of the intelligence business in the last century."

The Bush administration has repeatedly come under fire for instituting a surveillance program that utilizes warrantless wiretapping. Many groups and individuals have claimed this violates privacy and personal liberties and the legality of the program is still being debated today.

However, the vice president sees it differently, saying that the program is "one of the main reasons we’ve been successful in defending the country against further attacks."

He added, "And I don’t believe we violated anybody’s civil liberties."

Cheney cited various situations throughout history in which presidents took extraordinary actions under the banner of protecting the country against enemies, including those which may be seen as going against the Constitution.