Before his passing at the age of 84, former Vice President Dick Cheney called Donald Trump a ‘coward’ and labeled him the country’s greatest ‘threat’. Cheney held the position of the 46th US vice president under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009.
Following the 9/11 terror attacks, Cheney was the one who took control while President Bush was away from the nation’s capital.
His family confirmed that he passed away on Monday (November 3) due to complications from pneumonia as well as cardiac and vascular disease.
At the time of his death, Cheney was surrounded by his wife, Lynne, and his daughters, Liz and Mary.
“For decades, Dick Cheney served our nation, including as White House Chief of Staff, Wyoming’s Congressman, Secretary of Defense, and Vice President of the United States,” the family’s statement read.
“Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing. We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country.
“And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man.”
Although Cheney largely retreated from elected positions, he continued to be a significant and vocal presence in US politics, especially concerning national security and foreign policy.
He received a heart transplant in 2012, a procedure he described as ‘the gift of life himself’.
In his later years, Cheney found himself marginalized within the Republican party after he openly criticized President Donald Trump.
Initially, he supported Trump in 2016 despite Trump’s criticisms of Bush-Cheney foreign policies.
However, Trump’s refusal to accept his 2020 election loss and the subsequent January 6 Capitol riots prompted Cheney to speak out.
In a 2022 advertisement for his daughter Liz’s political campaign, Cheney addressed the camera directly and expressed his criticisms of Trump.
“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” he said.
“He is a coward. A real man wouldn’t lie to his supporters. He lost his election, and he lost big. I know it. He knows it, and deep down, I think most Republicans know,” he continued.
In what became his final presidential election vote, Cheney parted ways with the Republicans, choosing to support Democrat candidate Kamala Harris instead.
“As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris,” he stated in his daughter’s TV advertisement.