Dick Cheney Dies at 84: From Heart Attacks and DUI to Trump Critic and Kamala Harris Voter

WASHINGTON D.C. – Dick Cheney, a dominant figure in American conservatism for decades, has died at age 84 due to complications of pneumonia and heart disease, his family announced Tuesday. His passing brings a close to a life marked by extraordinary political power, physical resilience, and a dramatic late-career break with the party he helped define.

Cheney, who served as the 46th Vice President, survived a series of heart attacks beginning at age 37, ultimately undergoing a heart transplant in 2012.

In an extraordinary coda to his political story, the hardline conservative became an aggressive, public critic of the populist shift in the Republican Party under Donald Trump. Cheney, who had supported Trump in 2016, lashed out following the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.

In a rare public appearance supporting his daughter, Rep. Liz Cheney’s unsuccessful 2022 primary campaign, Cheney delivered a scathing condemnation:

“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 is a coward.”

This break culminated in the final presidential election of his life, when the former Vice President cast his vote for Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024, citing a \”duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution.\”

Cheney’s personal life was defined by the health struggles that began with his first heart attack in 1978. He continued a full, vigorous public life, relying on a heart pump before receiving a transplant in 2012, which he called \”the gift of life itself.\”

His early life was marked by a turning point after he was kicked out of Yale, returned West, and was twice arrested for DUI. His future wife, Lynne, delivered an ultimatum that spurred him to return to school and focus on his career, launching his journey from a power line worker in Wyoming to a master of Washington\’s inner circle.

Cheney is survived by his wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary Cheney, and seven grandchildren.