In My Time (84 page)

My Italian holiday ended about the time I came off the ventilator and my eyes focused on the face of a doctor calling my name. When he saw that I was coming to, he said, “How do you feel, Mr. Cheney? You’re looking good.” I knew enough to doubt him and am afraid I did not reply as graciously as I should have. But my rather rude response got a laugh from the doctor and everyone else in the room. I was on my way back.

Like a lot of people who face life-threatening illness and walk in the sunshine again, I couldn’t dismiss the possibility that more than the skill of doctors, the luck of the draw, or my own will to live had pulled me through. I do know that my cause was pleaded in some earnest prayers. On the phone with my old friends John and Mary Kay Turner in Wyoming, Liz asked them to light a candle for me. “We’ll do more than pray,” John told her. “We’ll storm Heaven.”

I have some medical choices to make in the future, but I’m doing well for now. I’ve gotten used to the various contraptions that are always with me, and I’m working and traveling, I’ve hunted a time or two, and I have some fishing planned.

With Lynne, Liz and Phil and our granddaughters, Kate, Elizabeth and Grace near our home in Wyoming, my favorite place on earth. (Official White House Photo/Dav id Bohrer)

My forward strategy is to assume an abundance of good days ahead. Since the age of thirty-seven, when I first learned I had coronary artery disease, my attitude has been to place all bets on a long future and so far it’s worked. But however many tomorrows there are, I know well how fortunate I am to have had the years I’ve had. I have reached the biblical three score and ten, and a man who can look back on the things I have seen and the people I have known has no grounds for complaint.

In my time, I have known and even been saluted by men given far shorter lives who gave far more in service to their country. What a privilege it was to have spent so much of my career in the company of the men and women of the United States armed forces.

At Fort Stewart, Georgia, July 21, 2006, thanking members of the 3rd Infantry Division and the Georgia National Guard's 48rh Brigade Combat Team for their service in Iraq. (Official White House Photo/David Bohrer)

As a young man,
and again half a lifetime later, I had a place in the room when great issues were debated and big questions decided. That chance was more than I expected when I headed to Washington more than forty years ago. And how lucky I am to have had Lynne, Liz, and Mary as my companions on that journey and now my grandchildren as well.

At Andrews Air Force Base with granddaughter, Elizabeth Perry and her luggage, getting ready to board Air Force II. (Official White House Photo/David Bohrer)

A seventh has joined us now, Mary and Heather’s daughter Sarah Lynne, the apple of her grandmother’s eye.

With our newest grandbaby, Sarah Lynne, in McLean, Virginia, spring 2011. (Photo by David Bohrer)

Giving grandson Sam a ride on the vice presidential helicopter, Marine II, with Mary and Heather. (Official White House Photo/David Bohrer)

I’ve seen some high-achieving people go far in the world more at the expense of their families than with their families, and to do that is to miss out on one of life’s finest experiences. As a family we’ve shared the work, the joys, and the laughter, the setbacks and the successes, and for that I am a grateful man.

I am a firm believer in America and its work in the world. Our political battles are messy, shrill, and sometimes cruel, and yet for all of that, the system has a way of producing courageous and compassionate action when it is needed most. We have stood firm in the face of evil and defied history in the selfless way we have done it. Instead of seeking empire, we have sought freedom for others.

There have been nearly ten generations since the country’s founding, and each succeeded in overcoming great challenges. All that I have seen in my time tells me that we will as well—but it is not inevitable. We hear warning after well-founded warning that we are living beyond our means, but we have not shown the political will to change that. Therein lies a danger not only for us but for generations to come whom we are burdening in ways our forebears would never have thought to burden us. And the technology that has eased our lives—indeed, that has saved mine—has a deadly downside. It has always been easy for those who are evil to kill, but now it is possible for a few to do so on an unimaginable scale. This is a danger all too easy to put out of mind, but one we simply cannot grow careless about.

The key, I think, is to choose serious and vigilant leaders, to listen to the men and women who want us to entrust them with high office and judge whether they are saying what they think we want to hear or whether they have the larger cause of the country in mind. It’s not always easy to move beyond pleasing promises, but in the case of
America, the greater good is so grand. We’re not a perfect country, but our founding ideals, right and true, have allowed human potential to unfold and creativity to thrive in ways never before seen on earth. We are so fortunate to be Americans. And we have a duty as clear as any I know to pass on this great nation, its possibilities undimmed, to the rising generations.

With Lynne and our dog, Dave, on the porch of the vice president’s residence. (Official White House Photo/David Bohrer)

My daughter Liz was my collaborator and the CEO of our book team. Working with her has been a joy. I deeply appreciated her energy and enthusiasm for the project, her talent, her knowledge, and her sense of humor. It is a rare blessing to have reason to spend so many hours of quality time telling your daughter about your life and work. My wife, Lynne, and my daughter Mary helped with the book as well, making this truly a family project, as so much of my public life has been. Lynne and Mary know my story and are both accomplished writers, which made their editorial suggestions invaluable.

Liz assembled an outstanding team to assist her. Robert Karem, who served on my national security team during my time as vice president, did stellar work researching, editing, and fact-checking, as well as ably keeping me up to speed on today’s national security issues. Alexandra Jajonie, a recent graduate of Virginia Tech, kept us all organized, oversaw much of the fact-checking, and demonstrated an ability to juggle tough assignments in a cool and collected manner that belied her years. Jim Steen, who lived through many of the chapters of this book, was invaluable in answering questions—in particular, about my days in Congress and as secretary of defense. His recall and ability to produce obscure documents instantaneously was singularly impressive. John McConnell and Matthew Scully, two of the best speechwriters I have ever known, provided valuable assistance for this book, and I would like to thank
them for all they have added to it. I am also grateful for their assistance over the years. In my speeches as vice president, they helped me capture crucial aspects of an historic time. Frank Gannon, whom I first met during the Nixon administration and who is a wonderful storyteller, was a wise and steady hand as I worked on this book. He brought the experience of having worked on previous memoirs as well as knowledge and memories of what Washington was like in the turbulent years of the early 1970s. I also want to thank Peter Long, who served as my assistant at the American Enterprise Institute and was an important part of the book team; Cara Jones, a former navy officer and graduate student at Johns Hopkins, who helped immensely in the research and fact-checking of the secretary of defense and vice presidency chapters; and Will Speicher, who also provided assistance checking facts in the early stages of the manuscript. Victoria Coates also provided key research assistance, particularly for the Nixon and Ford chapters of the book.

At the National Archives, our work was aided tremendously by Nancy Smith and Stephannie Oriabure, who answered questions, procured photos, and tracked down information from presidential libraries. Christian C. Goos at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and historian Donald A. Ritchie of the U.S. Senate Historical Office Staff also provided important research assistance. I want to thank them, and also Bill Leary of the National Security Council, who was instrumental in reviewing and expediting clearances for this book.