Maybe he was thinking of the next 4 years

Vice President Dick Cheney, who has a history of heart trouble, was having tests at a hospital Saturday after experiencing some shortness of breath, a White House spokesman said.

‘On the recommendation of his doctors, the vice president is going to George Washington University Hospital for some tests,” spokesman Ken Lisaius said. “He experienced some shortness of breath Saturday morning and has had a bad cold, which could be the cause for the shortness of breath.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47576-2004Nov13.html

The best comment so far? On Fark, where the headline reads “VP Cheney rushed to hospital. Bush notified, ready to assume power if necessary.”
It occurs to me that his visit to the hospital is why I was stuck in strange Saturday traffic — I was coming home from the office and ran into a standstill at the Rock Creek Parkway, which is not far from Cheney’s compound. He must have been on his way to the hospital just when I was trying to get home.