Funeral held for former US vice president, Iraq War architect Dick Cheney

A bipartisan radical of erstwhile United States presidents and officials has convened successful the National Cathedral successful Washington, DC, to honour the beingness of Dick Cheney, a vice president who passed distant connected November 3.

A almighty fig successful Republican politics, Cheney served nether President George W Bush from 2001 to 2009. He died astatine property 84.

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He is champion remembered for helping to spearhead the invasion of Iraq and crafting cardinal policies during the alleged “war connected terror”, including immoderate that led to quality rights abuses.

At Thursday’s funeral, a scope of apical officials lined the pews to connection their respects.

They included erstwhile Vice President Kamala Harris, erstwhile President Joe Biden, ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and erstwhile Vice President Mike Pence, who served during President Donald Trump’s archetypal term.

Notably absent was Trump himself: He and the existent vice president, JD Vance, were reportedly not invited.

Cheney’s erstwhile brag Bush was among the speakers to wage tribute to the vice president for his legacy.

“It’s thing to beryllium cherished erstwhile a antheral of his calibre has been your workfellow and friend,” Bush said successful his remarks.

“We’re grateful for his bully life, we honour his service, and we commune that determination up the way we volition conscionable him again.”

Former Representative Liz Cheney walks past her father’s casket aft speaking during his ceremonial connected November 20 [Matt Rourke/AP Photo]

The sombre memorial made small notation of the warfare successful Iraq, which Cheney played a cardinal relation successful advancing done a run of mendacious claims and deception.

Born successful Nebraska and raised successful Wyoming, Cheney was lone 34 erstwhile helium became main of unit to President Gerald Ford. He would aboriginal walk a decennary successful the House of Representatives and service arsenic defence caput to Bush’s father, George HW Bush.

But it was his clip nether the younger Bush’s presidency that would specify his legacy.

Following the attacks connected the US connected September 11, 2001, Cheney leveraged the vice presidency to beforehand an expansive imaginativeness of enforcement power.

He besides precocious the mendacious communicative that Iraq held “weapons of wide destruction” arsenic justification for the US penetration of that country.

During the US’s “war connected terror”, helium repeatedly defended measures specified arsenic torture, detention without owed process, and home surveillance successful the sanction of nationalist security.

Under Bush and Cheney’s leadership, critics constituent retired the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan destabilised the Middle East, starring to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.

The Iraq War ended successful 2011, and the struggle successful Afghanistan stretched connected for 2 decades, closing successful 2021.

The resulting unit crossed the Middle East caused 940,000 nonstop deaths, including 432,000 civilians killed successful the fighting. Millions much died from indirect causes related to the conflict, including illness and deficiency of healthcare infrastructure.

Cheney has mostly defended his way grounds arsenic vice president, contempt accusations from quality rights experts that helium oversaw a run of torture against US prisoners.

When asked successful 2014 astir his enactment for “enhanced interrogation tactics” similar waterboarding, helium denied that they were torture astatine all.

Cheney added helium would “do it again” and called those who carried retired the interrogations “heroes”.

Despite his relation arsenic 1 of the astir influential vice presidents successful US history, Cheney had mostly fallen retired of favour with the Republican Party implicit the past 15 years.

He became further estranged from members of his enactment arsenic helium emerged arsenic a vocal professional of President Trump, calling the existent person a “threat to our republic”.

Cheney denounced, for example, Trump’s efforts to undermine the results of the 2020 statesmanlike election, which helium mislaid to Biden.

In 2024, Cheney supported then-Vice President Harris, a Democrat, implicit Trump’s re-election bid.

His girl Liz Cheney served arsenic 1 of 2 Republicans connected a legislature committee investigating the onslaught connected the US Capitol connected January 6, 2021, which was led by Trump supporters successful protestation of his 2020 loss.

She was yet ousted from her spot successful the House of Representatives successful a superior situation from a pro-Trump candidate. She aboriginal campaigned alongside Harris successful the 2024 statesmanlike race.

“To beryllium successful my dad’s institution was to cognize information and emotion and laughter and kindness,” Liz said successful her remarks astatine his ceremonial connected Thursday.

“He was a elephantine to the end, a lion of a man, who loved and served this large republic.”