WASHINGTON – Vice President Dick Cheney (search) was unapologetic Friday about the salty language he used in a conversation with Sen. Patrick Leahy (search) earlier this week on the Senate floor, which erupted when Cheney dressed down Leahy for the senator's harsh criticism of government contracts with Halliburton.
Halliburton (search) is the energy services company that Cheney led before running for vice president. It has been caught in a series of investigations related to its overcharging the government for services.
Leahy had suggested that the vice president had intervened in order to direct government contracts to Halliburton for Iraq (search) reconstruction projects.
Cheney, who confronted Leahy on the Senate floor on Tuesday about the accusations, told FOX News on Friday that he's not sorry for dropping an expletive frequently reserved for only the angriest of exchanges.
"I expressed myself rather forcefully. I felt better after I did it," Cheney told Neil Cavuto.
When pressed on whether the vice president had actually dropped the F-bomb on the Vermont lawmaker, Cheney responded: "That's not the kind of language I usually use."
Members of Leahy's staff and several other senators overheard the exchange, according to Senate sources. Cheney said he was most upset by what he described as Leahy's counterfeit charm after having made attacks on his integrity.
Click in the video box near the top of this story to watch a report by FOX News' Major Garrett.
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