As I've said elsewhere, I don't think that Cheney's strong performance is helpful to Bush's reelection efforts. If anything, it demonstrated that Cheney has a much better grasp of the Bush Doctrine than, uh, Bush. There's no question in my mind that Cheney is stronger, smarter, and more experienced than John Edwards (though I do have concerns about Cheney's ethics). However, this election is not about the Vice Presidents.