ASHINGTON - Republican vice presidential nominee Dick Cheney, recovering from what doctors called ''a very slight'' heart attack, was feeling well enough Thanksgiving Day to have turkey and all the trimmings with his family, hospital spokeswoman Lisa Saisselin said yesterday.
Saisselin, speaking for doctors at George Washington University hospital, where Cheney underwent treatment Wednesday to open a seriously blocked artery, held out hope that he could be released within 24 hours.
''If Cheney continues to do as perfectly as he's doing now, he could be discharged as early as'' today, she said.
Cheney suffered three previous heart attacks and underwent bypass surgery during the 1980s amid his five-term tenure in Congress. And the occurrence of a fourth episode, although apparently very small, indicates he continues to suffer from coronary artery disease.
Cheney was pronounced fit by his doctors last summer when he became Governor George W. Bush's running mate. But Cheney since then has refused to release his old medical records.
Officials in the Bush campaign, as well as Cheney himself, insisted that the latest incident would not affect his ability to keep working.
''We anticipate that he will continue to be available by phone and the doctors have told us that there are no limitations,'' Bush spokeswoman Karen Hughes said. ''He's been involved in the conference calls and the decision making, and we expect that will continue.''
Lynne Cheney joined her husband in marking the holiday, as did the Cheneys' oldest daughter, Elizabeth; her husband, Phil; and granddaughters Kate, Elizabeth, and Grace.
Cheney issued a statement saying they ''appreciate all the kind thoughts and good wishes he's received from Americans across the country,'' and they wished ''all Americans a happy Thanksgiving with their families.''
Cheney took a Thanksgiving Day telephone call from his Democratic vice presidential counterpart, US Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut. Cheney aide Kathleen Shanahan said that the two exchanged holiday good wishes and that Lieberman wished his opponent a speedy recovery.
Despite the extraordinary presidential election legal contest, the two had a ''very cordial'' conversation and both vice presidential candidates said ''they would like to get together when this is all resolved,'' Shanahan said.
After suffering his first three coronary attacks and undergoing the bypass operation, Cheney went on to serve as secretary of defense under President Bush during the Persian Gulf War and led a vigorous program of corporate expansion as CEO of the Halliburton Co., based in Texas.
After experiencing chest pains Wednesday, Cheney went to GWU hospital in downtown Washington. Doctors found that one of his arteries was 90 percent blocked. They inserted a tiny medical device called a stent into the narrowed section of the artery to open it.
Since the procedure does not require a general anesthetic and produces an immediate increase in blood flow to the heart, patients normally bounce back quickly.
Doctors praised Cheney's quick action in going to the hospital. Politicians and others in the public eye sometimes hesitate to seek early medical treatment because they fear publicity will damage their careers, said cardiovascular surgeon Hugh Trout, who is a member of the GWU hospital staff.
''How smart he was to go get help in these tumultuous times,'' Trout said, suggesting Cheney may have saved his life by acting quickly instead of waiting until the problem worsened.
In an interview Wednesday night on CNN's ''Larry King Live,'' Cheney said, ''It's one of those things where I'd learned, had drummed into me properly over the years, that anytime you feel something that might be cardiac-related, you go check it out.''
