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Cheney prefers court to disclosure in Enron case

US Vice President Dick Cheney has said the White House is prepared to go to court to fight the Congress demand for the release of documents as a part of its inquiry into the influence Enron Corp had in formulating the energy policies of the government.

Cheney said in an interview to a television network that the General Accounting Office, the agency demanding the documents, was overstepping its authority.

He has a right to keep the documents secret to preserve his ability to get "unvarnished" advice from outside consultants, he added.

Cheney said it was the right of the President and Vice President to keep secret meetings like those that he and his energy taskforce had over the last year with Enron executives as the administration devised its energy policy.

But the New York Times quoted head of the agency David M Walker as saying that it is "highly likely" that he would file a law suit against the Bush administration if Cheney does not turn over documents by the end of the week.

The Times said if the agency files the suit, it would be the first time that accounting office, investigative arms of the Congress, would be suing another government department for not co-operating with an inquiry.

Cheney said, "What I object to and what the President's objected to, and what we've told GAO we won't do, is make it impossible for me or future Vice Presidents to ever have a conversation in confidence with anybody without having, ultimately, to tell a member of Congress what we talked about and what was said."

Enron was a major contributor to the Republican party and it now being alleged that the corporation influenced the Bush administration's energy plan.

A lawsuit would increase pressure on Cheney.

Cheney told the networks that Enron did not get any special deals and has been treated appropriately by the administration.

The Times said some Republican strategists have begun to worry that Cheney's stance is contributing to perceptions that the White House has something to hide on the issue.

The New York Times/CBS News Poll published on Monday shows that a majority of Republicans believe that the administration had no been forthcoming about its dealings with Enron.

Walker said that it was his view that the White House had put Cheney in charge of energy policy for that very reason to claim executive privilege and avoid oversight of the group by Congress.

At least 10 Congressional committees are investigating the Enron debacle.

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