Dick Cheney, Vice President to George W Bush, dies at the age of 84

Dick Cheney, who served as the 46th Vice President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W Bush, has died at the age of 84, his family said in a statement on Tuesday.

 

He died from complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease.

 

“His beloved wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary, and other family members were with him as he passed,” the family said. “Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing.”

 

 

“We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man,” the statement added.  Health Issues

 

Cheney’s health problems began early in his political career. He suffered his first heart attack in 1978 at age 37 while running for Congress, followed by others in 1984, 1988, and November 2000, days after the contested presidential election that brought Bush and Cheney to power.

 

At the time, Cheney had said he would be “the first to step down” if he felt unable to perform his duties, and had even prepared a resignation letter in case he became incapacitated.

 

He completed two terms as vice president, attending Barack Obama’s 2009 inauguration in a wheelchair. After a fifth heart attack in 2010, Cheney received a heart pump and later underwent a heart transplant in 2012.