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Richard Bruce Cheney, who served as the 46th Vice President of the United States under President George W Bush from 2001 to 2009, died on Tuesday at the age of 84. His family confirmed his death in a statement. Cheney was a key figure in American politics for decades and is known as the architect of the war on terror. Cheney played a major role in leading the United States into the Iraq War on faulty assumptions of weapons of mass destruction. He was later criticized for exaggerating intelligence reports to justify the invasion. Despite his controversial decisions, he remained unapologetic until his death, insisting he did what was necessary to respond to unprecedented attacks on US soil. Born on January 30, 1941, in Lincoln, Nebraska, Cheney grew up in Casper, Wyoming. His political career began as a congressional aide under Richard Nixon. After serving as Deputy Chief of Staff under Gerald Ford and Defense Secretary under George HW Bush, he was elected to Congress from Wyoming's sole US House seat in 1978. Cheney survived multiple heart attacks, even undergoing a heart transplant in 2012, and calling it the gift of life itself. Cheney had a complicated relationship with President George W Bush over issues like same-sex marriage and his chief of staff's conviction for perjury. He later became a vocal critic of Donald Trump, calling him a coward and the greatest threat to the republic. In an ironic twist, Cheney voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, reflecting his estrangement from the Republican Party.
