Dick Cheney's Legacy: What Are the Influences of the Late VP on His Daughter, Liz Cheney?

Former US Vice President Dick Cheney passed away on Monday night, 3 November, as confirmed by his family in an official statement.

Cheney served two terms as vice president under President George W. Bush, ending his tenure in 2009. Together with his daughter, former Wyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney, he became known as one of the most vocal Republican critics of President Donald Trump.

Liz was given the cold shoulder by the GOP for defying Trump and for her role in the investigation into the 6 January Capitol riot. She was also one of the ten Republican representatives who voted to impeach Trump during his first term of presidency, citing his alleged incitement to use violence at the Capitol.

But beyond her political opposition, what traits did Liz inherit from her father, both as a politician and as a person?

Liz Cheney As Political Heir

Liz is the eldest among Dick and Lynne Cheney's daughters. She is the only one to follow her father into politics.

She served as a representative for Wyoming in the US Congress from 2017 to 2023. As a prominent Trump critic, she joined her father in supporting Kamala Harris during the 2024 Presidential elections.

The younger Cheney initially supported Trump during his 2016 campaign, but she later expressed regret in an interview with NBC's Kristen Walker on Meet the Press, as reported by The Enquirer.

'For, certainly, people after what he did on January 6, to act as though you can have confidence in him, you know that simply is just not credible,' she stated on the interview released in 2024. 'The other thing I think people have to realise is what he did on January 6, you know, watching that brutal attack, that's depravity. And it's also just fundamentally cruel.'

Her Father's Words

Liz reflected on her father's influence in her 2023 memoir, Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning.

According to the then-Wyoming representative, she and her father were surprised to realise that they were among the few Republicans who refused to support Trump during the Capitol riots. 'It's one thing to hear about what's happening in our party, but to see it, like this, in such stark terms,' the former vice president told his daughter, as quoted in her book.

She also told CNN that her father instilled in her the importance of standing firm in her beliefs. 'I want people to know that my father raised me to have the courage of my convictions,' Liz shared.

Liz added that she hopes people remember her father as one of the few Republican leaders who chose principle over party loyalty. 'I want people to remember that my father chose country over party,' Liz stated.

The Former VP's Death

Dick Cheney, who was second in command under George W. Bush, died surrounded by his loved ones at the age of 84. He passed away due to complications of pneumonia and longstanding vascular and cardiac disease.

Trump has yet to release any statement about Cheney's death. However, the White House ordered flags to be lowered to half-mast in honour of the late vice president.