Dick Cheney Richard Bruce " Dick " Cheney ( born January 30 , 1941 ) is an American politician and businessman who was the 46th Vice President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 , under President George W . Bush . Born in Lincoln , Nebraska , Cheney was primarily raised in Sumner , Nebraska , and Casper , Wyoming . He attended the University of Wyoming , where he earned a BA and an Master in Political Science , and began his political career as an intern for Congressman William A . Steiger , eventually working his way into the White House during the Nixon and Ford administrations , where he later served as the White House Chief of Staff , from 1975 to 1977 . In 1978 , Cheney was elected to the U . S . House of Representatives representing Wyoming ' s At - large congressional district from 1979 to 1989 ; he was reelected five times , briefly serving as House Minority Whip in 1989 . Cheney was selected to be the Secretary of Defense during the presidency of George H . W . Bush , holding the position for the majority of Bush ' s term from 1989 to 1993 . During his time in the Department of Defense , Cheney oversaw the 1991 Operation Desert Storm , among other actions . Out of office during the Clinton administration , Cheney was chairman and CEO of Halliburton Company from 1995 to 2000 . In July 2000 , Cheney was chosen by presumptive Republican presidential nominee George W . Bush as his running mate in the 2000 presidential election . They defeated their Democratic opponents , incumbent Vice President Al Gore and Senator Joe Lieberman . In 2004 Cheney was reelected to his second term as Vice President ; defeating Senator John Kerry and his running mate , Senator John Edwards . During Cheney ' s tenure as Vice President , he played a lead behind the scenes role in response to the 9 / 11 Terrorist Attacks and coordination of the War on Terror . He was an early proponent of the Iraq War and defender of the Administration ' s record on terrorism . He became at odds with the views of President Bush for his support of gay marriage in 2004 . Cheney was often criticized for the Bush Administration ' s policies regarding the War on Terror , NSA Wiretapping and " Enhanced interrogation techniques . " In 2011 , Cheney published his memoir " , " written with daughter Liz Cheney . Cheney is often cited as the most powerful Vice President in American history . Early life and education . Cheney was born in Lincoln , Nebraska , the son of Marjorie Lorraine ( née Dickey ) and Richard Herbert Cheney . He is of predominantly English , as well as Welsh , Irish , and French Huguenot , ancestry ; Cheney ' s 8th great - grandfather , William Cheney , immigrated from England to Massachusetts in the 17th century . Although not a direct descendant , he is collaterally related to Benjamin Pierce Cheney ( 1815 – 1895 ) , the early American expressman . Cheney is a very distant cousin of both Harry S . Truman and Barack Obama ; the three share a common ancestor in Mareen Duvall , a Huguenot who fled from France to England in the 17th century and later settled in Maryland . His father was a soil conservation agent for the U . S . Department of Agriculture and his mother was a softball star in the 1930s ; Cheney was one of three children . He attended Calvert Elementary School before his family moved to Casper , Wyoming , where he attended Natrona County High School . He attended Yale University , but by his own account had problems adjusting to the college , and flunked out twice . Among the influential teachers from his days in New Haven was Professor H . Bradford Westerfield , whom Cheney repeatedly credited with having helped to shape his approach to foreign policy . He later attended the University of Wyoming , where he earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in political science . He subsequently started , but did not finish , doctoral studies at the University of Wisconsin – Madison . In November 1962 , at the age of 21 , Cheney was convicted of driving while intoxicated ( DWI ) . He was arrested for DWI again the following year . Cheney said that the arrests made him " think about where I was and where I was headed . I was headed down a bad road if I continued on that course " . In 1964 , he married Lynne Vincent , his high school sweetheart , whom he had met at age 14 . When Cheney became eligible for the draft , during the Vietnam War , he applied for and received five draft deferments . In 1989 , " The Washington Post " writer George C . Wilson interviewed Cheney as the next Secretary of Defense ; when asked about his deferments , Cheney reportedly said , " I had other priorities in the ' 60s than military service " . Cheney testified during his confirmation hearings in 1989 that he received deferments to finish a college career that lasted six years rather than four , owing to sub - par academic performance and the need to work to pay for his education . Initially , he was not called up because the Selective Service System was only taking older men . When he became eligible for the draft , he applied for four deferments in sequence . He applied for his fifth exemption on January 19 , 1966 , when his wife was about 10 weeks pregnant . He was granted 3 - A status , the " hardship " exemption , which excluded men with children or dependent parents . In January 1967 , Cheney turned 26 and was no longer eligible for the draft . Early White House appointments . Cheney ' s political career began in 1969 , as an intern for Congressman William A . Steiger during the Richard Nixon Administration . He then joined the staff of Donald Rumsfeld , who was then Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity from 1969 – 70 . He held several positions in the years that followed : White House Staff Assistant in 1971 , Assistant Director of the Cost of Living Council from 1971 – 73 , and Deputy Assistant to the president from 1974 – 1975 . As deputy assistant , Cheney suggested several options in a memo to Rumsfeld , including use of the US Justice Department , that the Ford administration could use to limit damage from an article , published by " The New York Times , " in which investigative reporter Seymour Hersh reported that Navy submarines had tapped into Soviet undersea communications as part of a highly classified program , Operation Ivy Bells . Cheney was Assistant to the President under Gerald Ford . When Rumsfeld was named Secretary of Defense , Cheney became White House Chief of Staff , succeeding Rumsfeld . He later was campaign manager for Ford ' s 1976 presidential campaign . U . S . House of Representatives . Elections . In 1978 , Cheney was elected to represent Wyoming in the U . S . House of Representatives and succeed retiring Congressman Teno Roncalio , having defeated his Democratic opponent , Bill Bailey . Cheney was re - elected five times , serving until 1989 . In 1987 , he was elected Chairman of the House Republican Conference . The following year , he was elected House Minority Whip . He served for two and a half months before he was appointed Secretary of Defense instead of former U . S . Senator John G . Tower , whose nomination had been rejected by the U . S . Senate in March 1989 . Tenure . He voted against the creation of the U . S . Department of Education , citing his concern over budget deficits and expansion of the federal government , and claiming that the Department was an encroachment on states ' rights . He voted against funding Head Start , but reversed his position in 2000 . Cheney supported Bob Michel ’ s ( R - IL ) bid to become Republican Minority Leader . In April 1980 , Cheney endorsed Governor Ronald Reagan for President , becoming one of Reagan ' s earliest supporters . In 1986 , after President Ronald Reagan vetoed a bill to impose economic sanctions on South Africa for its policy of apartheid , Cheney was one of 83 Representatives to vote against overriding Reagan ' s veto . In later years , he articulated his opposition to unilateral sanctions against many different countries , stating " they almost never work " and that in that case they might have ended up hurting the people instead . In 1986 , Cheney , along with 145 Republicans and 31 Democrats , voted against a non - binding Congressional resolution calling on the South African government to release Nelson Mandela from prison , after the Democrats defeated proposed amendments that would have required Mandela to renounce violence sponsored by the African National Congress ( ANC ) and requiring it to oust the communist faction from its leadership ; the resolution was defeated . Appearing on CNN , Cheney addressed criticism for this , saying he opposed the resolution because the ANC " at the time was viewed as a terrorist organization and had a number of interests that were fundamentally inimical to the United States . " The federal building in Casper , a regional center of the fossil fuel industry , is named the Dick Cheney Federal Building . Committee assignments . Originally declining , U . S . Congressman Barber Conable persuaded Cheney to join the moderate Republican Wednesday Group in order to move up the leadership ranks . He was elected Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee from 1981 to 1987 . Cheney was the Ranking Member of the Select Committee to investigate the Iran - Contra Affair . He promoted Wyoming ' s petroleum and coal businesses as well . Secretary of Defense . President George H . W . Bush nominated Cheney for the office of Secretary of Defense immediately after the U . S . Senate failed to confirm John Tower for that position . The senate confirmed Cheney by a vote of 92 to 0 and he served in that office from March 1989 to January 1993 . He directed the United States invasion of Panama and Operation Desert Storm in the Middle East . In 1991 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bush . Later that year , he received the U . S . Senator John Heinz Award for Greatest Public Service by an Elected or Appointed Official , an award given out annually by Jefferson Awards . Early tenure . Cheney worked closely with Pete Williams , Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs , and Paul Wolfowitz , Under Secretary of Defense for Policy , from the beginning of his tenure . He focused primarily on external matters , and left most of the internal DoD management to Deputy Secretary of Defense Donald Atwood . Budgetary practices . Cheney ' s most immediate issue as Secretary of Defense was the Department of Defense budget . Cheney deemed it appropriate to cut the budget and downsize the military , following the Reagan Administration ' s peacetime defense buildup at the height of the Cold War . As part of the fiscal year 1990 budget , Cheney assessed the requests from each of the branches of the armed services for such expensive programs as the B - 2 stealth bomber , the V - 22 Osprey tilt - wing helicopter , the Aegis destroyer and the MX missile , totaling approximately $ 4 . 5 billion in light of changed world politics . Cheney opposed the V - 22 program , which Congress had already appropriated funds for , and initially refused to issue contracts for it before relenting . When the 1990 Budget came before Congress in the summer of 1989 , it settled on a figure between the Administration ' s request and the House Armed Services Committee ' s recommendation . In subsequent years under Cheney , the proposed and adopted budgets followed patterns similar to that of 1990 . Early in 1991 , he unveiled a plan to reduce military strength by the mid - 1990s to 1 . 6 million , compared with 2 . 2 million when he entered office . Cheney ' s 1993 defense budget was reduced from 1992 , omitting programs that Congress had directed the Department of Defense to buy weapons that it did not want , and omitting unrequested reserve forces . Over his four years as Secretary of Defense , Cheney downsized the military and his budgets showed negative real growth , despite pressures to acquire weapon systems advocated by Congress . The Department of Defense ' s total obligational authority in current dollars declined from $ 291 billion to $ 270 billion . Total military personnel strength decreased by 19 percent , from about 2 . 2 million in 1989 to about 1 . 8 million in 1993 . Notwithstanding the overall reduction in military spending , Cheney directed the development of a Pentagon plan to ensure U . S . military dominance in the post - Cold War era . Political climate and agenda . Cheney publicly expressed concern that nations such as Iraq , Iran , and North Korea , could acquire nuclear components after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 . The end of the Cold War , the fall of the Soviet Union , and the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact obliged the first Bush Administration to reevaluate the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ' s ( NATO ' s ) purpose and makeup . Cheney believed that NATO should remain the foundation of European security relationships and that it would remain important to the United States in the long term ; he urged the alliance to lend more assistance to the new democracies in Eastern Europe . Cheney ' s views on NATO reflected his skepticism about prospects for peaceful social development in the former Eastern Bloc countries , where he saw a high potential for political uncertainty and instability . He felt that the Bush Administration was too optimistic in supporting General Secretary of the CPSU Mikhail Gorbachev and his successor , Russian President Boris Yeltsin . Cheney worked to maintain strong ties between the United States and its European allies . Cheney persuaded the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to allow bases for U . S . ground troops and war planes in the nation . This was an important element of the success of the Gulf War , as well as a lightning - rod for Islamists , such as Osama bin Laden , who opposed having non - Muslim armies near their holy sites . International situations . Using economic sanctions and political pressure , the United States mounted a campaign to drive Panamanian ruler General Manuel Antonio Noriega from power after he fell from favour . In May 1989 , after Guillermo Endara had been duly elected President of Panama , Noriega nullified the election outcome , drawing intensified pressure . In October , Noriega suppressed a military coup , but in December , after soldiers of the Panamanian army killed a U . S . serviceman , the United States invasion of Panama began under Cheney ' s direction . The stated reason for the invasion was to seize Noriega to face drug charges in the United States , protect U . S . lives and property , and restore Panamanian civil liberties . Although the mission was controversial , U . S . forces achieved control of Panama and Endara assumed the Presidency ; Noriega was convicted and imprisoned on racketeering and drug trafficking charges in April 1992 . In 1991 , the Somali Civil War drew the world ' s attention . In August 1992 , the United States began to provide humanitarian assistance , primarily food , through a military airlift . At President Bush ' s direction , Cheney dispatched the first of 26 , 000 U . S . troops to Somalia as part of the Unified Task Force ( UNITAF ) , designed to provide security and food relief . Cheney ' s successors as Secretary of Defense , Les Aspin and William J . Perry , had to contend with both the Bosnian and Somali issues . Iraqi invasion of Kuwait . On August 1 , 1990 , Iraqi President Saddam Hussein sent the invading Iraqi forces into neighboring Kuwait , a small petroleum - rich state long claimed by Iraq as part of its territory . This invasion sparked the initiation of the Persian Gulf War and it brought worldwide condemnation . An estimated 140 , 000 Iraqi troops quickly took control of Kuwait City and moved on to the Saudi Arabia / Kuwait border . The United States had already begun to develop contingency plans for the defense of Saudi Arabia by the U . S . Central Command , headed by General Norman Schwarzkopf , because of its important petroleum reserves . U . S . and world reaction . Cheney and Schwarzkopf oversaw planning for what would become a full - scale U . S . military operation . According to General Colin Powell , Cheney " had become a glutton for information , with an appetite we could barely satisfy . He spent hours in the National Military Command Center peppering my staff with questions . " Shortly after the Iraqi invasion , Cheney made the first of several visits to Saudi Arabia where King Fahd requested U . S . military assistance . The United Nations took action as well , passing a series of resolutions condemning Iraq ' s invasion of Kuwait ; the UN Security Council authorized " all means necessary " to eject Iraq from Kuwait , and demanded that the country withdraw its forces by January 15 , 1991 . By then , the United States had a force of about 500 , 000 stationed in Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf . Other nations , including Britain , Canada , France , Italy , Syria , and Egypt , contributed troops , and other allies , most notably Germany and Japan , agreed to provide financial support for the coalition effort , named Operation Desert Shield . On January 12 , 1991 , Congress authorized Bush to use military force to enforce Iraq ' s compliance with UN resolutions on Kuwait . Military action . The first phase of Operation Desert Storm , which began on January 17 , 1991 , was an air offensive to secure air superiority and attack Iraqi forces , targeting key Iraqi command and control centers , including the cities of Baghdad and Basra . Cheney turned most other Department of Defense matters over to Deputy Secretary Atwood and briefed Congress during the air and ground phases of the war . He flew with Powell to the region ( specifically Riyadh ) to review and finalize the ground war plans . After an air offensive of more than five weeks , UN Coalition forces launched the ground war on February 24 . Within 100 hours , Iraqi forces had been routed from Kuwait and Schwarzkopf reported that the basic objective — expelling Iraqi forces from Kuwait — had been met on February 27 . After consultation with Cheney and other members of his national security team , Bush declared a suspension of hostilities . Aftermath . A total of 147 U . S . military personnel died in combat , and another 236 died as a result of accidents or other causes . Iraq agreed to a formal truce on March 3 , and a permanent cease - fire on April 6 . There was subsequent debate about whether UN Coalition forces should have driven as far as Baghdad to oust Saddam Hussein from power . Bush agreed that the decision to end the ground war when they did was correct , but the debate persisted as Hussein remained in power and rebuilt his military forces . Arguably the most significant debate concerned whether U . S . and Coalition forces had left Iraq too soon . In an April 15 , 1994 interview with C - SPAN , Cheney was asked if the U . S . and UN forces should have moved into Baghdad . Cheney replied that occupying and attempting to take over the country would have been a " bad idea " and would have led to a " quagmire " , explaining that : Because if we ' d gone to Baghdad we would have been all alone . There wouldn ' t have been anybody else with us . There would have been a U . S . occupation of Iraq . None of the Arab forces that were willing to fight with us in Kuwait were willing to invade Iraq . Once you got to Iraq and took it over , took down Saddam Hussein ' s government , then what are you going to put in its place ? That ' s a very volatile part of the world , and if you take down the central government of Iraq , you could very easily end up seeing pieces of Iraq fly off : part of it , the Syrians would like to have to the west , part of it - eastern Iraq - the Iranians would like to claim , they fought over it for eight years . In the north you ' ve got the Kurds , and if the Kurds spin loose and join with the Kurds in Turkey , then you threaten the territorial integrity of Turkey . It ' s a quagmire if you go that far and try to take over Iraq . The other thing was casualties . Everyone was impressed with the fact we were able to do our job with as few casualties as we had . But for the 146 Americans killed in action , and for their families - it wasn ' t a cheap war . And the question for the president , in terms of whether or not we went on to Baghdad , took additional casualties in an effort to get Saddam Hussein , was how many additional dead Americans is Saddam worth ? Our judgment was , not very many , and I think we got it right . Cheney regarded the Gulf War as an example of the kind of regional problem the United States was likely to continue to face in the future . We ' re always going to have to be involved [ in the Middle East ] . Maybe it ' s part of our national character , you know we like to have these problems nice and neatly wrapped up , put a ribbon around it . You deploy a force , you win the war and the problem goes away . But it doesn ' t work that way in the Middle East . It never has , and isn ' t likely to in my lifetime . Private sector career . Between 1987 and 1989 , during his last term in Congress , Cheney was a director of the Council on Foreign Relations foreign policy organization . With the new Democratic administration under President Bill Clinton in January 1993 , Cheney left the Department of Defense and joined the American Enterprise Institute . He also served a second term as a Council on Foreign Relations director from 1993 to 1995 . From 1995 until 2000 , he served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Halliburton , a Fortune 500 company . Cheney ' s record as CEO was subject to some dispute among Wall Street analysts . A 1998 merger between Halliburton and Dresser Industries attracted the criticism of some Dresser executives for Halliburton ' s lack of accounting transparency . Although Cheney is not named as an individual defendant in the suit , Halliburton shareholders are pursuing a class - action lawsuit alleging that the corporation artificially inflated its stock price during this period . In June 2011 , the United States Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling and allowed the case to continue be litigated . Cheney was named in a December 2010 corruption complaint filed by the Nigerian government against Halliburton , which the company settled for $ 250 million . During Cheney ' s term , Halliburton changed its accounting practices regarding revenue realization of disputed costs on major construction projects . Cheney resigned as CEO of Halliburton on July 25 , 2000 . As vice president , he argued that this step removed any conflict of interest . Cheney ' s net worth , estimated to be between $ 19 million and $ 86 million , is largely derived from his post at Halliburton . His 2006 gross joint income with his wife was nearly $ 8 . 82 million . He was also a member of the board of advisors of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs ( JINSA ) before becoming vice president . 2000 presidential election . In early 2000 , while serving as the CEO of Halliburton , Cheney headed then - Governor of Texas George W . Bush ' s vice - presidential search committee . On July 25 , after reviewing Cheney ' s findings , Bush surprised some pundits by asking Cheney himself to join the Republican ticket . Halliburton reportedly reached agreement on July 20 to allow Cheney to retire , with a package estimated at $ 20 million . A few months before the election Cheney put his home in Dallas up for sale and changed his drivers ' license and voter registration back to Wyoming . This change was necessary to allow Texas ' presidential electors to vote for both Bush and Cheney without contravening the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution , which forbids electors from voting for someone from their own state for both President and Vice President . Cheney campaigned against Al Gore ' s running mate , Joseph Lieberman , in the 2000 presidential election . While the election was undecided , the Bush - Cheney team was not eligible for public funding to plan a transition to a new administration . So , Cheney opened a privately funded transition office in Washington . This office worked to identify candidates for all important positions in the cabinet . According to Craig Unger , Cheney advocated Donald Rumsfeld for the post of Secretary of Defense to counter the influence of Colin Powell at the State Department , and tried unsuccessfully to have Paul Wolfowitz named to replace George Tenet as director of the Central Intelligence Agency . Vice Presidency . First term . Following the September 11 , 2001 attacks , Cheney remained physically apart from Bush for security reasons . For a period , Cheney stayed at an undisclosed location , out of public view . He also utilized a heavy security detail , employing a motorcade of 12 to 18 government vehicles for his daily commute from the Vice Presidential residence at the U . S . Naval Observatory to the White House . On the morning of June 29 , 2002 , Cheney served as Acting President of the United States under the terms of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution , while Bush was undergoing a colonoscopy . Cheney acted as President from 11 : 09 UTC that day until Bush resumed the powers of the presidency at 13 : 24 UTC . Iraq War . Following 9 / 11 , Cheney was instrumental in providing a primary justification for a renewed war against Iraq . Cheney helped shape Bush ' s approach to the " War on Terror " , making numerous public statements alleging Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction , and making several personal visits to CIA headquarters , where he questioned mid - level agency analysts on their conclusions . Cheney continued to allege links between Saddam Hussein and al - Qaeda , even though President Bush received a classified President ' s Daily Brief on September 21 , 2001 indicating the U . S . intelligence community had no evidence linking Saddam Hussein to the September 11 attacks and that " there was scant credible evidence that Iraq had any significant collaborative ties with Al Qaeda " . Furthermore , in 2004 , the 9 / 11 Commission concluded that there was no " collaborative relationship " between Iraq and al Qaeda . Following the US invasion of Iraq , Cheney remained steadfast in his support of the war , stating that it would be an " enormous success story " , and made many visits to the country . He often criticized war critics , calling them " opportunists " who were peddling " cynical and pernicious falsehoods " to gain political advantage while US soldiers died in Iraq . In response , Senator John Kerry asserted , " It is hard to name a government official with less credibility on Iraq [ than Cheney ] . " In a March 24 , 2008 extended interview conducted in Ankara , Turkey with ABC News correspondent Martha Raddatz on the fifth anniversary of the original U . S . military assault on Iraq , Cheney responded to a question about public opinion polls showing that Americans had lost confidence in the war by simply replying " So ? " This remark prompted widespread criticism , including from former Oklahoma Republican Congressman Mickey Edwards , a long - time personal friend of Cheney . Second term . Bush and Cheney were re - elected in the 2004 presidential election , running against John Kerry and his running mate , John Edwards . During the election , the pregnancy of his daughter Mary and her sexual orientation as a lesbian became a source of public attention for Cheney in light of the same - sex marriage debate . Cheney has stated that he is in favor of gay marriages but that each individual state should decide whether to permit it . Cheney ' s former chief legal counsel , David Addington , became his chief of staff and remained in that office until Cheney ' s departure from office . John P . Hannah served as Cheney ' s national security adviser . Until his indictment and resignation in 2005 , I . Lewis " Scooter " Libby , Jr . served in both roles . On the morning of July 21 , 2007 , Cheney once again served as acting president , from 7 : 16 am to 9 : 21 am . Bush transferred the power of the presidency prior to undergoing a medical procedure , requiring sedation , and later resumed his powers and duties that same day . After his term began in 2001 , Cheney was occasionally asked if he was interested in the Republican nomination for the 2008 elections . However , he always maintained that he wished to retire upon the expiration of his term and he did not run in the 2008 presidential primaries . The Republicans nominated Arizona Senator John McCain . Disclosure of documents . Cheney was a prominent member of the National Energy Policy Development Group ( NEPDG ) , commonly known as the Energy task force , which comprised energy industry representatives , including several Enron executives . After the Enron scandal , the Bush administration was accused of improper political and business ties . In July 2003 , the Supreme Court ruled that the US Department of Commerce must disclose NEPDG documents , containing references to companies that had made agreements with the previous Iraqi government to extract Iraq ' s petroleum . Beginning in 2003 , Cheney ' s staff opted not to file required reports with the National Archives and Records Administration office charged with assuring that the executive branch protects classified information , nor did it allow inspection of its record keeping . Cheney refused to release the documents , citing his executive privilege to deny congressional information requests . Media outlets such as " Time magazine " magazine and CBS News questioned whether Cheney had created a " fourth branch of government " that was not subject to any laws . A group of historians and open - government advocates filed a lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Columbia , asking the court to declare that Cheney ' s vice - presidential records are covered by the Presidential Records Act of 1978 and cannot be destroyed , taken or withheld from the public without proper review . CIA leak scandal . On October 18 , 2005 , " The Washington Post " reported that the vice president ' s office was central to the investigation of the Valerie Plame CIA leak scandal , for Cheney ' s former chief of staff , Lewis " Scooter " Libby , was one of the figures under investigation . Following an indictment , Libby resigned his positions as Cheney ' s chief of staff and assistant on national security affairs . On September 8 , 2006 , Richard Armitage , former Deputy Secretary of State , publicly announced that he was the source of the revelation of Plame ' s status . Armitage said he was not a part of a conspiracy to reveal Plame ' s identity and did not know whether one existed . In February 2006 , " The National Journal " reported that Libby had stated before a grand jury that his superiors , including Cheney , had authorized him to disclose classified information to the press regarding intelligence on Iraq ' s weapons . On March 6 , 2007 , Libby was convicted on four felony counts for obstruction of justice , perjury , and making false statements to federal investigators . In his closing arguments , independent prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald said that there was " a cloud over the vice president " , an apparent reference to Cheney ' s interview with FBI agents investigating the case , which was made public in 2009 . Cheney lobbied President George W . Bush vigorously and unsuccessfully to grant Libby a full Presidential pardon up to the day of Barack Obama ' s inauguration , likening Libby to a " soldier on the battlefield " . Assassination attempt . On February 27 , 2007 , at about 10 am , a suicide bomber killed 23 people and wounded 20 more outside Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan during a visit by Cheney . The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and declared that Cheney was its intended target . They also claimed that Osama Bin Laden supervised the operation . The bomb went off outside the front gate , however , while Cheney was inside the base and half a mile away . He reported hearing the blast , saying " I heard a loud boom . . . The Secret Service came in and told me there had been an attack on the main gate . " The purpose of Cheney ' s visit to the region had been to press Pakistan for a united front against the Taliban . Policy formulation . Cheney has been characterized as the most powerful and influential Vice President in history . Both supporters and critics of Cheney regard him as a shrewd and knowledgeable politician who knows the functions and intricacies of the federal government . A sign of Cheney ' s active policy - making role was then - House Speaker Dennis Hastert ' s provision of an office near the House floor for Cheney in addition to his office in the West Wing , his ceremonial office in the Old Executive Office Building , and his Senate offices ( one in the Dirksen Senate Office Building and another off the floor of the Senate ) . Cheney has actively promoted an expansion of the powers of the presidency , saying that the Bush administration ’ s challenges to the laws which Congress passed after Vietnam and Watergate to contain and oversee the executive branch — the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act , the Presidential Records Act , the Freedom of Information Act and the War Powers Resolution — are , in Cheney ' s words , " a restoration , if you will , of the power and authority of the president " . In June 2007 , the " Washington Post " summarized Cheney ’ s vice presidency in a Pulitzer Prize - winning four - part series , based in part on interviews with former administration officials . The articles characterized Cheney not as a " shadow " president , but as someone who usually has the last words of counsel to the president on policies , which in many cases would reshape the powers of the presidency . When former Vice President Dan Quayle suggested to Cheney that the office was largely ceremonial , Cheney reportedly replied , " I have a different understanding with the president . " The articles described Cheney as having a secretive approach to the tools of government , indicated by the use of his own security classification and three man - sized safes in his offices . The articles described Cheney ’ s influence on decisions pertaining to detention of suspected terrorists and the legal limits that apply to their questioning , especially what constitutes torture . U . S . Army Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson , who served as Colin Powell ' s chief of staff when he was both Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the same time Cheney was Secretary of Defense , and then later when Powell was Secretary of State , stated in an in - depth interview that Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld established an alternative program to interrogate post - 9 / 11 detainees because of their mutual distrust of CIA . The Washington Post articles , principally written by Barton Gellman , further characterized Cheney as having the strongest influence within the administration in shaping budget and tax policy in a manner that assures " conservative orthodoxy . " They also highlighted Cheney ’ s behind - the - scenes influence on the administration ’ s environmental policy to ease pollution controls for power plants , facilitate the disposal of nuclear waste , open access to federal timber resources , and avoid federal constraints on greenhouse gas emissions , among other issues . The articles characterized his approach to policy formulation as favoring business over the environment . In June 2008 , Cheney allegedly attempted to block efforts by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to strike a controversial US compromise deal with North Korea over the communist state ' s nuclear program . In July 2008 , a former Environmental Protection Agency official stated publicly that Cheney ' s office had pushed significantly for large - scale deletions from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report on the health effects of global warming " fearing the presentation by a leading health official might make it harder to avoid regulating greenhouse gases . " In October , when the report appeared with six pages cut from the testimony , The White House stated that the changes were made due to concerns regarding the accuracy of the science . However , according to the former senior adviser on climate change to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson , Cheney ' s office was directly responsible for nearly half of the original testimony being deleted . In his role as President of the U . S . Senate , Cheney broke with the Bush Administration Department of Justice , and signed an amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court in the case of Heller v . District of Columbia that successfully challenged gun laws in the nation ' s capitol on Second Amendment grounds . On February 14 , 2010 , in an appearance on ABC ' s " This Week " , Cheney reiterated his support of waterboarding and enhanced interrogation techniques for captured terrorist suspects , saying , " I was and remain a strong proponent of our enhanced interrogation program . " Post Vice - Presidency . The " Washington Post " reported in 2008 that Cheney purchased a home in McLean , Virginia ( Washington suburbs ) , which he was to tear down for a replacement structure . He also maintains homes in Wyoming and on Maryland ' s Eastern Shore . Political activity . In July 2012 , Cheney used his Wyoming home to host a private fund - raiser for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney , which netted over $ 4 million in contributions from attendees for Romney ' s campaign . Cheney is the subject of a documentary film " " The World According to Dick Cheney " " premiering March 15 , 2013 on the Showtime television channel . Cheney was also reported to be the subject of an HBO television mini - series based on Barton Gellman ' s 2008 book " " and the 2006 documentary " The Dark Side " , produced by the Public Broadcasting Service . Cheney maintained a visible public profile after leaving office , being especially critical of Obama administration policies on national security . In May 2009 , Cheney spoke of his support for same - sex marriage , becoming one of the most prominent Republican politicians to do so . Speaking to the National Press Club , Cheney stated , " People ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish , any kind of arrangement they wish . I do believe , historically , the way marriage has been regulated is at a state level . It ' s always been a state issue , and I think that ' s the way it ought to be handled today . " In 2012 , Cheney reportedly encouraged several Maryland state legislators to vote to legalize same - sex marriage in that state . Although , by custom , a former vice president unofficially receives six months of protection from the United States Secret Service , President Obama reportedly extended the protection period for Cheney . On July 11 , 2009 , CIA Director Leon Panetta told the Senate and House intelligence committees that the CIA withheld information about a secret counter - terrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from Cheney . Intelligence and Congressional officials have said the unidentified program did not involve the CIA interrogation program and did not involve domestic intelligence activities . They have said the program was started by the counter - terrorism center at the CIA shortly after the attacks of September 11 , 2001 , but never became fully operational , involving planning and some training that took place off and on from 2001 until this year . The " Wall Street Journal " reported , citing former intelligence officials familiar with the matter , that the program was an attempt to carry out a 2001 presidential authorization to capture or kill al Qaeda operatives . Views on President Obama . Cheney has publicly criticized President Obama since the 2008 presidential election . On December 29 , 2009 , four days after the attempted bombing of an international passenger flight from Netherlands to United States , Cheney criticized Obama : " [ We ] are at war and when President Obama pretends we aren ' t , it makes us less safe . [ . . . ] Why doesn ' t he want to admit we ' re at war ? It doesn ' t fit with the view of the world he brought with him to the Oval Office . It doesn ' t fit with what seems to be the goal of his presidency — social transformation — the restructuring of American society . " In response , White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer wrote on the official White House blog the following day , " [ I ] t is telling that Vice President Cheney and others seem to be more focused on criticizing the Administration than condemning the attackers . Unfortunately too many are engaged in the typical Washington game of pointing fingers and making political hay , instead of working together to find solutions to make our country safer . " During a February 14 , 2010 appearance on ABC ' s " This Week " , Cheney reiterated his criticism of the Obama administration ' s policies for handling suspected terrorists , criticizing the " mindset " of treating " terror attacks against the United States as criminal acts as opposed to acts of war " . In a May 2 , 2011 , interview with ABC News , Cheney praised the Obama administration for the operation that resulted in the killing of Osama bin Laden . Memoir . In August 2011 , Cheney published his memoir , " " , written with Liz Cheney . The book outlines Cheney ' s recollections of 9 / 11 , the War on Terrorism , the 2001 War in Afghanistan , the run - up to the 2003 Iraq war , enhanced interrogation techniques and other events . According to Barton Gellman , the author of " " , Cheney ' s book differs from publicly available records on details surrounding the NSA surveillance program . Public perception . Cheney ' s early public opinion polls were more favorable than unfavorable , reaching his peak approval rating in the wake of the September 11 attacks at 68 percent . However , polling numbers for both him and the president gradually declined in their second terms , with Cheney reaching his lowest point shortly before leaving office at 13 percent . In April 2007 , Cheney was awarded an honorary doctorate of public service by Brigham Young University , where he delivered the commencement address . His selection as commencement speaker was controversial . The college board of trustees issued a statement explaining that the invitation should be viewed " as one extended to someone holding the high office of vice president of the United States rather than to a partisan political figure " . BYU permitted a protest to occur so long as it did not " make personal attacks against Cheney , attack ( the ) BYU administration , the church or the First Presidency " . Cheney has often been compared to Darth Vader , a characterization originated by his critics but later adopted humorously by Cheney himself as well as members of his family and staff . Personal life . Cheney is a member of the United Methodist Church and was the first Methodist vice president to serve under a Methodist president . His wife , Lynne Cheney , was chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities from 1986 to 1996 . She is now a public speaker , author , and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute . The couple have two children , Elizabeth and Mary , and seven grandchildren . Elizabeth , his elder daughter , is married to Philip J . Perry , former General Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security . Mary Cheney , a former employee of the Colorado Rockies baseball team and Coors Brewing Company , a campaign aide to the Bush re - election campaign , and an open lesbian , currently lives in Great Falls , Virginia , with her longtime partner Heather Poe . Health problems . Cheney ' s long histories of cardiovascular disease and periodic need for urgent health care raised questions of whether he was medically fit to serve in public office . Having smoked approximately 3 packs of cigarettes per day for nearly 20 years , Cheney sustained the first of five heart attacks in 1978 , at age 37 . Subsequent attacks in 1984 , 1988 , 2000 , and 2010 have resulted in moderate contractile dysfunction of his left ventricle . On September 24 , 2005 , Cheney underwent a six - hour endo - vascular procedure to repair popliteal artery aneurysm s bilaterally , a catheter treatment technique used in the artery behind each knee . The condition was discovered at a regular physical in July , and was not life - threatening . Cheney was hospitalized for tests after experiencing shortness of breath five months later . In late April 2006 , an ultrasound revealed that the clot was smaller . On March 5 , 2007 , Cheney was treated for deep - vein thrombosis in his left leg at George Washington University Hospital after experiencing pain in his left calf . Doctors prescribed blood - thinning medication and allowed him to return to work . CBS News reported that during the morning of November 26 , 2007 , Cheney was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and underwent treatment that afternoon . On July 12 , 2008 , Cheney underwent a cardiological exam ; doctors reported that his heartbeat was normal for a 67 - year - old man with a history of heart problems . As part of his annual checkup , he was administered an electrocardiogram and radiological imaging of the stents placed in the arteries behind his knees in 2005 . Doctors said that Cheney had not experienced any recurrence of atrial fibrillation and that his special pacemaker had neither detected nor treated any arrhythmia . On October 15 , 2008 , Cheney returned to the hospital briefly to treat a minor irregularity . On January 19 , 2009 , Cheney strained his back " while moving boxes into his new house " . As a consequence , he was in a wheelchair for two days , including his attendance at the 2009 United States presidential inauguration . On February 22 , 2010 , Cheney was admitted to George Washington University Hospital after experiencing chest pains . A spokesperson later said Cheney had experienced a mild heart attack after doctors had run tests . On June 25 , 2010 , Cheney was admitted to George Washington University Hospital after reporting discomfort . In early July 2010 , Cheney was outfitted with a left - ventricular assist device ( LVAD ) at Inova Fairfax Heart and Vascular Institute to compensate for worsening congestive heart failure . The device pumped blood continuously through his body . He was released from Inova on August 9 , 2010 , and had to decide whether to seek a full heart transplant . This pump was centrifugal and as a result he remained alive without a pulse for nearly fifteen months . On March 24 , 2012 , Cheney underwent a seven - hour heart transplant procedure at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church , Virginia , at the age of 71 . He had been on a waiting list for more than 20 months before receiving the heart from an anonymous donor . Cheney ' s principal cardiologist , Dr . Jonathan Reiner , advised his patient that " it would not be unreasonable for an otherwise healthy 71 - year - old man to expect to live another 10 years " with a transplant , saying in a family - authorized interview that he considered Cheney to be otherwise healthy . Hunting incident . On February 11 , 2006 , Dick Cheney shot Harry Whittington , a 78 - year - old Texas attorney , while participating in a quail hunt at Armstrong ranch in Kenedy County , Texas . Secret Service agents and medical aides , who were traveling with Cheney , came to Whittington ' s assistance and treated his birdshot wounds to his right cheek , neck , and chest . An ambulance standing by for the Vice President took Whittington to nearby Kingsville before he was flown by helicopter to Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital . On February 14 , 2006 , Whittington suffered a non - fatal heart attack and atrial fibrillation due to at least one lead - shot pellet lodged in or near his heart . Because of the small size of the birdshot pellets , doctors decided to leave up to 200 pieces of the pellets lodged in his body rather than try to remove them . The Secret Service stated that they notified the Sheriff about one hour after the shooting . Kenedy County Sheriff Ramone Salinas III stated that he first heard of the shooting at about 5 : 30 PM . The next day , ranch owner Katharine Armstrong informed the Corpus Christi Caller - Times of the shooting . Cheney had a televised interview with MSNBC News about the shooting on February 15 . Both Cheney and Whittington have called the incident an accident . Early reports indicated that Cheney and Whittington were friends and that the injuries were minor . Whittington has since told the " Washington Post " that he and Cheney were not close friends but acquaintances and has not said if Cheney apologized . The sheriff ’ s office released a report on the shooting on February 16 , 2006 and witness statements on February 22 , indicating that the shooting occurred on clear sunny day , and Whittington was shot from 30 or away while searching for a downed bird . Armstrong , the ranch owner , claimed that all in the hunting party were wearing blaze - orange safety gear and none had been drinking . However , Cheney has acknowledged that he had one beer four or five hours prior to the shooting . Although Kenedy County Sheriff ' s Office documents support the official story by Cheney and his party , re - creations of the incident produced by George Gongora and John Metz of the Corpus Christi Caller - Times indicated that the actual shooting distance was closer than the 30 yards claimed . The incident hurt Cheney ' s popularity standing in the polls . According to polls on February 27 , 2006 , two weeks after the accident , Dick Cheney ' s approval rating had dropped 5 percentage points to 18 % . The incident has been the subject of jokes , satire and public ridicule .