WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Former Vice President may have been a legendary figure within the Republican Party, but for President , he was part of a long list of people he viewed as political opponents.
While White House flags were lowered to half-staff in remembrance of Cheney on Tuesday, there was no fanfare, and Trump made no comment about Cheney’s death on social media. His press secretary Karoline Leavitt did not mention his passing in a press briefing until she was asked by a reporter 鈥� and then made only perfunctory comments.
鈥淚 know the president is aware of the former vice president鈥檚 passing. And as you saw, flags have been lowered to half-staff in accordance with statutory law,鈥� Leavitt said.
Trump was not so quiet about Cheney on the campaign trail last year, speaking regularly about him and his daughter, , a former member of Congress who bucked most of her party to become a leading critic and examiner of Trump鈥檚 desperate attempts to retain power after he . Dick Cheney backed his daughter, and in a twist the Democrats of his era could never have imagined, ultimately said he would , Kamala Harris.
While campaigning in Traverse City, Michigan, Trump told Arab and Muslim voters that Dick Cheney鈥檚 support for Harris should give them pause, saying he 鈥渒illed more Arabs than any human being on Earth. He pushed Bush, and they went into the Middle East.鈥�
Trump told conservative media personality Tucker Carlson that he was 鈥渘ever a fan of Cheney鈥� but said he thought the former vice president would back him, anyway. 鈥淚 was a little surprised because I actually thought that Dick Cheney would go with me over his daughter, and he didn鈥檛,鈥� Trump said at a Oct. 31, 2024 campaign event with Carlson.
In his first term, Trump had granted Cheney’s former chief of staff, for his 2007 conviction of lying to investigators and obstruction of justice.
鈥淲hen I became president, I actually called Dick Cheney. I said, 鈥楲et me ask you about Scooter Libby,鈥欌�� Trump told Carlson, saying he thought former President George W. Bush 鈥渄idn鈥檛 have the courage鈥� to pardon Libby.
鈥淚 released him. Cheney called me, he said, 鈥榠t鈥檚 one of the nicest things I鈥檝e ever seen done in politics,鈥欌�� Trump said.
Trump’s public antipathy to the former vice president was sparked by excoriating criticism from Liz Cheney. She was vice chair of the that spent months investigating the and concluded that it was an 鈥渁ttempted coup鈥� and a direct result of the defeated president鈥檚 effort to overturn the 2020 election.
鈥淧resident Trump summoned a violent mob,鈥� Liz Cheney, who at the time represented Wyoming in the House, said during one of the committee’s public hearings. 鈥淲hen a president fails to take the steps necessary to preserve our union 鈥� or worse, causes a constitutional crisis 鈥� we鈥檙e in a moment of maximum danger for our republic.鈥�
The elder Cheney later cut a television campaign ad for his daughter as she sought reelection to the House. That bid failed, largely due to her anti-Trump stance.
A conservative, Dick Cheney sounded an alarm about returning Trump to high office.
鈥淚n our nation鈥檚 246-year history, there has never been an individual who was a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,鈥� Cheney said in the 2022 . 鈥淗e tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He is a coward.鈥�
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Associated Press writer Calvin Woodward contributed to this report.
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