As much as many of us dislike Darth Vader (a.k.a the master of evil smirks, Dick Cheney), the Bush-Cheney administration may leave us with one positive political legacy: the strong Vice-President.
Although I hope that no VP ever reaches the height of power that I suspect Dick Cheney has achieved, I think a firmly No. 2 yet powerful VP serves two important purposes.
A powerful VP can make an administration stronger and more viable. He/She can be the point person on serveral policy initiatives and free the President to do more (if they're not lazy like Dubya).
A stronger VP role can also prove a better training ground for the eventual duties of a future President. Instead of a sometime obscure policy show-boy, an administration can develop a VP to be a very competent chief executive.
I personally would love to see Edwards as a VP on someone's ticket, with an eye toward giving him a substantial role in the administration. I hope Bush-Cheney will start a positive trend. What do the masses think?