Barack and Michelle Obama have skipped Dick Cheney’s funeral.
The former president and first lady chose not to attend the ex-vice president’s ceremony – despite George and Laura Bush and Joe and Jill Biden paying tribute at the Washington National Cathedral in DC on Thursday.
Neither Bill nor Hillary Clinton attended Cheney’s funeral.
Donald Trump and JD Vance were not invited to the memorial. The pair have been fierce critics of Cheney and his legacy, and the late Republican notably endorsed Biden over Trump in the 2024 election.
It is not convention for former presidents to attend the funerals of former vice presidents – rather it is traditional for ex-VPs to pay their respects.
All living former vice presidents were present for the service: Kamala Harris, Al Gore, Dan Quayle, and Mike Pence.
Protocol dictates the seating arrangements, with the Bushes, Bidens and then Harris – who was attending without her husband Doug Emhoff – seated in the front row.
On Harris’ other side sat Pence and his wife Karen.
Barack Obama, his wife Michelle and their daughters Malia and Sasha as he is sworn in as a US Senator by vice president Dick Cheney on January 4, 2005, in Washington, DC
Former First Lady Jill Biden (center) was captured pursing her lips as former President Joe Biden (left) greeted former Vice President Kamala Harris, their first reunion since Harris’ 2024 tell-all memoir was released
Former US Vice Presidents Al Gore (L), Dan Quayle (C) and Kamala Harris (R) attend the funeral service for former Vice President Dick Cheney
Trump replaced Pence on the 2024 ticket after Pence refused to support his attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Harris greeted Karen Pence with a hug and appeared to have a warm conversation with Mike as he took his seat.
She was also captured chatting animatedly with other former VPs, Quayle and Gore.
Cheney’s funeral brought out a bipartisan collection of Washingtonians as the late vice president crossed the aisle a year before his death by backing Harris’ bid for the White House.
The former VP was following the lead of his daughter, former GOP Representative Liz Cheney, who saw her political career tank under Trump over her leadership of the House committee on January 6.
‘He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him,’ Cheney said in a statement in September 2024. ‘He can never be trusted with power again.’
Trump, in turn, had been critical of Bush 43 and Cheney’s tenure for years, blasting them for embroiling the US in ‘forever wars’ like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Dr. Biden (right) is captured whispering into her husband former President Joe Biden’s ear as former President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush (left) watch Dick Cheney’s funeral service
Former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci and television host Rachel Maddow at the funeral service for former Vice President Dick Cheney
Vance, who served as a Marine in Iraq, paid tribute to his predecessor while acknowledging their differences at an event hosted by Breitbart News on Thursday.
‘My condolences go to Dick Cheney and his family,’ the VP said. ‘Obviously there’s some political disagreements there, but he was a guy who served his country, and we certainly wish his family the best in this moment of grieving.’
Former House Speakers Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner were on hand, as was Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham, Senator Mitch McConnell, possible 2028 Democratic hopeful Representative Jamie Raskin, Dr. Anthony Fauci and liberal TV anchor Rachel Maddow.
