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The White House confirmed flags were lowered for Dick Cheney as required by law but offered no condolences, reflecting Trump's long-running feud with the late vice president and his family.
The White House offered no public condolences following the death of former Vice President Dick Cheney.
New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 5, 2025 03:07 IST
The White House offered no public condolences on Tuesday following the death of former Vice President Dick Cheney, saying flags were lowered to half-staff simply because the law required it.
“I know the president is aware of the former vice president’s passing,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. “As you saw, flags have been lowered to half-staff in accordance with statutory law.”
Pressed on whether President Donald Trump had reached out to the Cheney family or planned to attend funeral services, Leavitt added bluntly, “I don’t believe the White House is involved in that planning — or at least hasn’t gotten to it yet.”
Cheney, who died Monday at age 84, was one of the most powerful and divisive vice presidents in US history — the chief architect of the Iraq War and the post-9/11 war on terror.
A veteran of multiple Republican administrations, he later became one of Trump’s most vocal critics, declaring that there has never been an individual who was a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump.
That remark — aired in a campaign ad for his daughter, Liz Cheney, who helped investigate Trump’s role in the January 6 Capitol riot — made the Cheneys political pariahs within the GOP’s Trump era.
Once hailed by conservatives for his steely resolve, Cheney ended his life as a reluctant ally of Democrats, endorsing Kamala Harris over Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
Trump, in turn, repeatedly branded Cheney a “warmonger” and mocked him as “the face of endless wars.”
Yet even his fiercest critics acknowledged his political influence. Cheney, who survived five heart attacks, once said he awoke each morning “thankful for the gift of another day” — an uncharacteristic softness from a man long defined by hard edges.
The lack of an official condolence message underscored the deep freeze between Trump and the Cheney family — one that even death couldn’t thaw.
- Ends
With inputs from agencies
Published By:
Aashish Vashistha
Published On:
Nov 5, 2025
