Rove or Cheney?

Karl Rove is "the center of all power in the White House." But Dick Cheney is the White House's "supreme power broker."

Cheney is the "most influential member of the Bush team." But Rove is the "most influential presidential aide in two decades."

According to Time, Rove is "the Busiest Man in Washington." According to Time, Cheney is the administration's "John Henry."

Cheney is "uniquely powerful." On the other hand, "no one, with the possible exception of the President, will be more responsible for the success or failure of Bush's presidency" than Rove.

Says Newsweek of Rove: "[He] has a hand in virtually every decision the president makes." Says Time of Cheney: "There is almost no major issue that doesn't feel his touch." (This is certainly a hands-on administration.)

It's enough to drive a poor influence-peddler crazy. If you need a wheel greased, who should you call? "The Indispensable Man" (Cheney)? Or "the man to see in Washington" (Rove)? If you're measuring influence, which is better: Cheney spending "half the working day" with W., or Rove talking "constantly" on the phone to Bush? Is Rove the shadow president? Or is Cheney?

This week has brought more conflicting evidence. Rove has almost single-handedly blocked the administration from permitting stem-cell research. Most Americans, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, and lots of top Republican politicians say it's a scientific and ethical good. Rove says it could alienate Catholic voters. Cheney, meanwhile, rushed back to the office a day after heart surgery, a frantic return that confirmed the Democratic suspicion that the White House—and President Bush—would collapse without him.

Naturally, administration folks—especially Cheney and Rove—insist President Bush is President Bush. He is the chairman, the CEO. He says jump, they say how high, etc. But Bush is a hands-off president—that's why Rove and Cheney have their hands in everything—and it's clear his underlings are remarkably powerful.

Who you believe is shadow president depends on your worldview. If you think the presidency is essentially politics, Rove is your man. If you believe the presidency is process, Cheney is.

Rove, officially Bush's senior adviser, is grandmaster of all things strategic and political. (This was a job Bill Clinton kept for himself.) His basic duty is to do whatever it takes to re-elect Bush in 2004. On Vieques, Puerto Rico, it was Rove who decided—without significantly consulting the president or defense secretary—that the administration would stop bombing runs in a couple of years. Rove calculated that the halt would please Hispanics. White House polling is funneled through Rove, and he uses the data to modify administration strategy. When Bush was pummeled for being anti-green and pro-energy, Rove decided the administration would emphasize environmental initiatives and back-burner drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Rove is the pooh-bah of national party politics: He helped install Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore as chairman of the RNC. When a bitter primary fight threatened GOP chances in a Minnesota Senate race recently, Rove was instrumental in persuading one of the candidates to withdraw.