** FILE ** Taiwan's first lady Wu Shu-chen pats her dog "Honey" during an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, in this Sept. 15, 2002 file photo, in Taipei, Taiwan. Today the 54-year-old wife of President Chen Shui-bian is no longer seen as a political asset, but rather as the central figure in a series of debilitating corruption scandals that have badly eroded Chen's grip on power. Earlier this week Chen announced he was ceding part of his powers to his premier, partially because of widely bruited accusations that Wu has routinely abused her position as Taiwan's first lady. (AP Photo/Jerome Favre, File)