August 5, 2007 (LPAC)--In a campaign forum hosted by ABC News August 4, the Republican Presidential candidates responded to the question from the moderator, George Stephanopoulos, "there's been a growing controversy over the role of the office of the vice president.... what authority would you delegate to the office of vice president?"

John McCain: "....I really would do what some presidents have done in the past. A vice president brings a certain area of expertise and talent. I would probably assign some of those areas, like telecommunications or some other important issues. But --

Moderator: "So not as wide-ranging as Vice President Cheney had?

McCain: "Look, I would be very careful that everybody understood that there's only one president."

.... Sam Brownback: "George, I wouldn't delegate things to the vice president. But I would involve the vice president in a lot of things.... Dick Cheney came in with a lot of experience .... on defense, foreign policy issues. And I think the president over-relied on that. I think Dick Cheney has done an admirable job. I think the president's over-relied upon that...."

Ron Paul: ".... If you take perceptions from Washington, most people there behind the scenes think the Vice President is more powerful than the President.

"Philosophically, I think this is the case. It's obvious that he represents a neo-conservative viewpoint.

"And my objection is that that has been the rejection of the Republican Party platform and traditional conservatism. And I think this is where we have gone astray. We have drifted from our fundamental premises and the conservative values that this party used to get."