Former US Vice President Dick Cheney Dies at 84; Architect of Iraq War and One of America’s Most Influential VPs

Digital Desk

Former US Vice President Dick Cheney, widely regarded as one of the most powerful and controversial figures in modern American politics, has died at the age of 84. His family announced on Tuesday that Cheney passed away due to complications from pneumonia and heart-related ailments.

Cheney served as Vice President under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009, a period defined by the September 11 attacks and the subsequent US invasion of Iraq, which he strongly advocated. His influence within the Bush administration was unparalleled for a vice president, shaping defense, foreign, and energy policies with far-reaching global consequences.

Often described as the driving force behind the Iraq war, Cheney asserted that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, a claim later proven false but pivotal in justifying the 2003 invasion. Critics labeled him a hardliner, while supporters hailed him as a staunch defender of US national security.

In later years, Cheney distanced himself from his party’s rightward shift, openly criticizing Donald Trump as “cowardly” and “a threat to democracy.” In the 2024 US presidential election, he broke ranks with the Republican Party, voting for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.

Cheney’s health battles were well known—he suffered five heart attacks between 1978 and 2010 and underwent a heart transplant in 2012. Doctors called him a “miracle of survival.”

Born on January 30, 1941, in Nebraska, Cheney rose from modest beginnings in Wyoming to become a central figure in American power. After serving as Secretary of Defense under President George H.W. Bush, overseeing the 1991 Gulf War, he later became CEO of Halliburton, before returning to politics as Bush’s running mate in 2000.

Cheney leaves behind a legacy that remains deeply divisive yet historically significant, emblematic of the post-9/11 era’s reshaping of American foreign policy.