As George W Bush's second-in-command in the war on terror declared after the 9/11 attacks, Cheney made himself one of the most powerful vice-presidents in US history, and was a key protagonist in the push to invade Iraq, as well as the use of torture on suspected al-Qaida members detained without charge in the CIA's offshore black sites. In doing so, he took an assertive view of the powers of the presidency relative to the other branches of government,
Dick Cheney, the architect of the War in Afghanistan and both of the Iraq Wars who personified the "forever war" ethos of the George W. Bush administration, has died at age 84. Late in life, Cheney did follow his daughter's lead and endorse Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, calling Trump a threat to democracy. Flooding from King Tides is expected today and through the week,
The death of Richard B. Cheney is a loss to the nation and a sorrow to his friends. Laura and I will remember Dick Cheney for the decent, honorable man that he was. History will remember him as among the finest public servants of his generation a patriot who brought integrity, high intelligence, and seriousness of purpose to every position he held.
The host defended Cheney's post-9/11 legacy and said it showed he was determined from that moment on, after 9/11, there would never be another 9/11 again. And he was going to do whatever he could to stop it. But he also is seeing reports day in and day out that would have scared the absolute hell out of any American that had access to all the threats, he continued.
Amid the chaos of the Trump Administration, implementing all of Cheney's dreams of unitary executive on Chicago's residents and Latin American fishermen, his death didn't even make it above the fold of the NYT. This blog has written probably 500 stories on Dick Cheney - about torture, about illegal surveillance, about drone strikes, about outing Valerie Plame. But the most recent are telling for his legacy:
Richard B. Cheney, the 46th Vice President of the United States, died last night, November 3, 2025. He was 84 years old. His beloved wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary, and other family members were with him as he passed. The former Vice President died due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease. 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.