washington - on the evenings he is in town , dick cheney wakes up at 6 , falls into his black powered clothing aircraft and drives himself to a restaurant beside his mclean , va . , home . he returns with a pair of grande skim lattes — decaf for him , custom for his fiancee , lynne — and goes into work in the heat - drenched office above his garage , penning his diary in longhand on yellow lawyer pads . it is the form of scene that americans have brought to expected from their oldest dignitaries : a silent , unassuming return to private life after buying up power . substitute , that is , for the quiet and unassuming part .
Dick Cheney is the former Vice President.