Former Vice President Dick Cheney, considered by many political observers to be the most politically active and influential vice president in American history, has died.
“Richard B. Cheney, the 46th Vice President of the United States, died last night, November 3, 2025,” his family said in a statement. “He was 84 years old. His beloved wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary, and other family members were with him when he passed away. The former vice president died due to complications from pneumonia and heart and vascular diseases.”
He worked for almost four decades in Washington. He was the youngest White House chief of staff during Gerald Ford’s presidency; represented Wyoming in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he worked with congressional leaders and President Ronald Reagan; was Secretary of Defense during the presidency of George HW Bush; and then served two terms as vice president during the administration of Bush’s son, President George W. Bush.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney appears on “Meet the Press” in Washington, DC, on December 2, 2018.
NBC Newswire/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via
He was also CEO of Halliburton, a Texas-based energy company that had a global presence.
When terrorists attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, it was Cheney who first took command while the president was away from Washington.
“When the president spoke, I told him that the Pentagon had been attacked and urged him to stay away from Washington,” Cheney recalled in his memoir, “In My Time.” “The city was under attack and the White House was a target. I understood that he didn’t want it to look like he was on the run, but he shouldn’t be here until we knew more about what was going on.”
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