By Joseph De Avila and Ken Thomas

Former President George W. Bush hailed Dick Cheney as a loyal, steadying force, "sparing and measured with words in a profession that attracts talkers," during a service Thursday for the late vice president, who died Nov. 3 at age 84.

Bush recalled asking Cheney, a former White House chief of staff who served as defense secretary under Bush's father, the late President George H.W. Bush, to help him find a running mate. "After weeks of these meetings, I began to have a thought I could not shake. I realized the best choice for the vice president was the man sitting right in front of me," Bush said.

"He was a thinker and a listener, and when he did speak up, conveying thoughts in that even tone of voice, that orderly, unexcitable manner, you knew you were getting the best of a highly disciplined mind," Bush said.

The funeral at Washington's National Cathedral brought together an array of political leaders from both parties, including former President Joe Biden, and all four of the other living former vice presidents: Kamala Harris, Mike Pence, Al Gore and Dan Quayle.

President Trump, who frequently assailed Cheney's role in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and didn't issue a public statement after Cheney's death, wasn't invited to the service, nor was Vice President JD Vance, a White House official confirmed. Cheney and his daughter, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R., Wyo.), both endorsed Harris in the 2024 election and were vocal critics of Trump's efforts to deny the 2020 election results.

During her remarks at the service, Liz Cheney said President John F. Kennedy inspired her father to dedicate his life in service to the country.

Though he became a Republican, "he knew that bonds of party must always yield to the single bond we share as Americans," Cheney said. "For him, a choice between defense of the constitution and defense of your political party was no choice at all."

Cheney, who served four Republican presidents and 10 years in Congress, was known as a national-security hawk and became one of the most powerful vice presidents in U.S. history. Cheney advocated for the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. The war's far-reaching political consequences helped turn the public against intervention and upended Republican politics.

Cheney went to work at the White House during the Nixon administration under the tutelage of Donald Rumsfeld. He later served as White House chief of staff for President Gerald Ford and defense secretary for President George H.W. Bush.

The funeral brought together longstanding political allies and adversaries, who politely shook hands and exchanged small talk as they waited for the service to begin.

Biden, who turned 83 on Thursday, greeted Harris and other attendees, including former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.), as he entered the pew. Harris and former first lady Jill Biden appeared to share a laugh as the Bidens arrived.

Biden and Harris have made infrequent joint appearances in recent months; both attended the June funeral of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, who were killed in a targeted shooting, and the two spoke by phone on Harris's birthday in October, aides said.

Harris sat next to Pence, Trump's onetime vice president, and chatted with Pence and his wife, Karen, while Bush exchanged greetings with Gore, whom Bush defeated in the 2000 presidential election following a lengthy recount in Florida.

Dr. Jonathan Reiner, Cheney's cardiologist, remembered Cheney as a person of courage who first grappled with a heart attack as a 37-year-old congressional candidate in Wyoming and dealt with heart disease for the remainder of his life.

"He lived most of his adult life chased by a relentless disease, intent on killing, but he never looked over his shoulder," Reiner said. "He only looked ahead."

Write to Joseph De Avila at joseph.deavila@wsj.com and Ken Thomas at ken.thomas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 20, 2025 13:05 ET (18:05 GMT)

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