This morning I woke up to the news that former vice president Dick Cheney, 84, had died. He had a history of heart problems throughout his adult life, so it is surprising he lived as long as he did. He had been a US representative from Wyoming and then was chief of staff under President Gerald Ford. He moved up the career ladder by taking a job with George Bush I as Secretary of Defense. The biggest feather in his cap, however, was he became vice president under George Bush II. Since the president had some shortcomings and wasn't all that serious, Cheney was actually the president in charge of everything. Cheney was known for his "war on terror" ideas, and many people hated him for it. I didn't agree with his politics, but I didn't hate him. I save contempt for the real assholes of the world like Steven Miller, Russell Vought, Peter Thiel, and, I don't want to forget, that smarmy piece of shit Mike Johnson.
His wife, Lynne, to whom he was married for 61 years, was also prominent in the GOP and what was then called "conservative" circles. They had two daughters, one, Liz, served in Congress herself and was a lightning rod for the insane Agent Orange in the White House since she couldn't tolerate his violations of the law and of the Constitution. Eventually the Cheney family got sick of the MAGA nitwits in general and Trump in particular. In return, Trump, ever the vengeful type, targeted Liz in particular.
I saw the Cheneys twice in person, both in 2004, when they campaigned for the Bush-Cheney ticket being re-elected. The Cheneys appeared at Sparks High School on the night before the election. I think it was almost the last stop for them in the campaign. I took that picture of him. I don't remember what he said that made him have the look on his face that he did, but it was one of several pictures I took. Some time before that, he and Lynne made an appearance at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, and I got to shake hands with both of them. Neither Cheney was tall, and I doubt Lynne was even five feet in shoes. She is very tiny.
Snip about his heart problems:
Cheney survived five heart attacks during his lifetime, suffering the first one during his first congressional campaign at 37. As a congressional member, he suffered two additional heart attacks. The fourth occurred following the presidential election in 2000 as a battle ensued over who was the winning candidate.Cheney had a cardiac defibrillator implanted as vice president.
In February 2010, he had a fifth heart attack after leaving office. Five months later, he was outfitted with a device that helped pump blood and compensate for increasing heart congestion. He underwent a heart transplant in March 2012 and a quadruple bypass surgery in 1988.
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