The US Government Just Literally Put Dick Cheney on a Pedestal

The likeness of Dick Cheney—former vice president and, some say, war criminal—is now enshrined at the U.S. capitol, where his marble bust, perched upon a pedestal, was unveiled Thursday.

Cheney himself, former President George W. Bush, Vice President Joe Biden, and Republican lawmakers attended the unveiling ceremony in the Capitol Visitor Center’s Emancipation Hall. The sculpture will now join the busts of over 40 other vice presidents both in and outside the U.S. Senate chamber.

The 43rd president and 46th vice president took the occasion to heap praise—and warm humor—on each other.

But the dedication raised some eyebrows, in part because it came just two days after Human Rights Watch released a scathing report calling for the administration of President Barack Obama to pursue a criminal investigation of Bush, Cheney, and other U.S. officials responsible for CIA torture.