Former Vice President Dick Cheney Dead At 84 - Beritaja

Former Vice President Dick Cheney, who extolled the powerfulness of the presidency, died Monday astatine the property of 84, his family said successful a statement.

The origin was complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, the connection said.

"Dick Cheney was a awesome and bully man who taught his children and grandchildren to emotion our country, and to unrecorded lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and alert fishing," the connection said. "We are grateful beyond measurement for each Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measurement to person loved and been loved by this noble elephantine of a man."

There was small successful Cheney's early life to foreshadow the immensely influential domiciled he would 1 time play astatine the highest levels of American politics. Born the boy of a authorities conservation worker successful Lincoln, Neb., successful 1941, he would flunk retired of Yale University and activity arsenic a lineman for a powerfulness institution successful his caller location authorities of Wyoming; flip successful a brace of drunken-driving convictions, and it's an inauspicious young adulthood.

But move it about Cheney did: matrimony to his precocious schoolhouse sweetheart, Lynn; 2 children; a assemblage grade astatine the University of Wyoming; postgraduate schoolhouse astatine the University of Wisconsin.

While Cheney was turning his life around, the U.S. was caught successful the throes of the Vietnam War. Cheney supported that warfare but ne'er fought successful it. He received 5 subject deferments. Critics would prehend upon this decades later, arsenic Cheney helped lead the U.S. into different arguable warfare — the 1 successful Iraq.

Ordinary To Extraordinary

The early vice president began his governmental profession arsenic a legislature intern successful 1969. That aforesaid twelvemonth he went to activity for a early partner successful the Bush management — Donald Rumsfeld, who ran an economics agency successful the Nixon White House.

Cheney near the White House earlier Nixon's resignation, but successful 1974 he was backmost moving for the caller president, Gerald Ford. Cheney moved up quickly, becoming Ford's main of unit astatine the property of 34.

It was past that he began to create a accuracy that would travel to afloat flower successful the White House of George W. Bush. His belief was that the powerfulness of the presidency must beryllium not only protected, but besides restored. In the 1970s, he watched arsenic Congress enacted reforms successful consequence to Watergate and to Vietnam.

"We've seen the War Powers Act, an anti-impoundment power act, and clip aft clip aft time, administrations person traded distant the authority of the president to do his job," he said successful a 2002 question and reply connected Fox News. "We're not going to do that successful this administration. The president is bound and wished to take sides those principles and to walk connected this office, his and mine, to early generations successful amended style than we recovered it."

War, A Recurring Theme

In 1978, Cheney ran for Congress successful Wyoming and won. That was besides the twelvemonth he suffered the first of a bid of bosom attacks. He served successful Congress for a decade and yet gave up his spot to go caput of defense for President George H.W. Bush. This occupation brought Cheney's first confrontation pinch Saddam Hussein, erstwhile he directed Operation Desert Storm successful the Middle East. The warfare ended quickly aft Iraqi troops were evicted from Kuwait. At the time, location were immoderate who felt the U.S. should proceed each the measurement to Baghdad and topple Saddam's regime. President Bush declined; successful 1994, Cheney defended that decision.

"The conception that we ought to now spell to Baghdad and someway return power of the state strikes maine arsenic an highly superior 1 successful position of what we'd person to do erstwhile we sewage there," he said. "You'd about apt person to put immoderate caller authorities successful place. It's not clear what benignant of authorities that would be, really agelong you'd person to stay. For the U.S. to get progressive militarily successful determining the result of the struggle complete who's going to govern successful Iraq strikes maine arsenic a classical meaning of a quagmire."

Cheney near the Pentagon erstwhile the first President Bush mislaid to Bill Clinton. Two years later, he flirted pinch a statesmanlike tally of his ain but alternatively headed to the backstage sector, joining the elephantine power services institution Halliburton.

Changing The Vice Presidency — And Foreign Policy

The occupation made Cheney a able man, but he stayed progressive successful blimpish politics. In 2000, he was asked by Republican statesmanlike campaigner George W. Bush to lead the hunt for a moving mate. Bush later made a astonishment announcement that he had chosen nary different than Cheney.

Dick Cheney and George W. Bush activity to the crowd during Bush's 2nd inauguration connected Jan. 20, 2005. Stephan Savoia/AP

Stephan Savoia/AP

Dick Cheney and George W. Bush activity to the crowd during Bush's 2nd inauguration connected Jan. 20, 2005.

Stephan Savoia/AP

In office, Cheney became a lightning rod for critics of the administration. Cheney besides redefined the agency of the vice president. He became President Bush's closest advisor and a ascendant subordinate successful argumentation shaping. Critics alleged that Cheney was really the man successful complaint astatine the White House. The events of Sept. 11, 2001, only reinforced this notion. While Bush was successful Florida that day, Cheney was astatine the White House. He was virtually carried by Secret Service agents to an underground bunker. In an question and reply years later connected NBC's Meet the Press, Cheney said it was he who told Bush not to return to the White House.

"I said, 'Delay your return. We don't cognize what's going connected present but it looks like, you know, we've been targeted,' " Cheney said, adding, "things that we did later connected that time tied straight to guaranteeing statesmanlike succession."

After the Sept. 11 attacks, Cheney advocated an fierce caller overseas argumentation successful which imaginable threats would beryllium met pinch swift, pre-emptive action. No longer would the U.S. hold for an force to onslaught first. He helped waste the Iraq War by issuing dire warnings to the American people. At the aforesaid time, he famously predicted that the ngo itself would beryllium comparatively easy.

On Meet the Press, Tim Russert, who past hosted the show, asked Cheney if the American group were fresh for a long, bloody battle.

"I don't deliberation it's apt to unfold that way, Tim, because I really do judge we will beryllium greeted arsenic liberators," Cheney said.

As the warfare dragged on, Democrats seized that connection arsenic grounds of really Cheney's determination to spell to warfare had clouded his judgment. There was talk that he had changed from his earlier days successful politics.

Controversy follows Cheney

And while Cheney's disposition was ne'er peculiarly sunny, critics assailed the vice president arsenic a relentlessly grim figure. Late-night comics called him Darth Vader. Even President Bush had nosy pinch his vice president's image connected Halloween 1 year.

"This greeting I was pinch the vice president," Bush told reporters. "I was asking him what costume he was planning. He said, 'Well I'm already wearing it,' and past he mumbled thing about the acheronian broadside of the force."

Cheney speaks to attendees astatine the yearly Conservative Political Action Conference successful Washington, D.C., connected Feb. 18, 2010. Robert Giroux/Getty Images

Robert Giroux/Getty Images

Cheney speaks to attendees astatine the yearly Conservative Political Action Conference successful Washington, D.C., connected Feb. 18, 2010.

Robert Giroux/Getty Images

There were different controversies that dogged Cheney arsenic the Bush administration's fame plummeted successful its 2nd term. In 2007, his main of unit and apical adviser, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, was convicted of perjury successful an investigation into the leaking of the sanction of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame. Cheney was not implicated successful the lawsuit legally, but he was tainted by the ungraded nonetheless.

Then, successful what was 1 of the much bizarre incidents involving personification arsenic precocious ranking successful the authorities arsenic Cheney, he accidentally changeable and wounded a friend, lawyer Harry Whittington, successful the look and thorax during a 2006 play quail-hunting travel astatine a Texas ranch.

Even successful a unusual communicative for illustration this, immoderate of the classical Cheney traits, specified arsenic secrecy, were connected display. The communicative didn't travel retired for 2 days, and erstwhile it yet did, Cheney himself took days longer to speak about it, yet doing an question and reply pinch Fox News.

On Cheney's last time successful office, he sat successful a wheelchair, the consequence of an accident, bundled up against the frigid cold, and watched arsenic President Obama was sworn in.

Now Cheney has died, leaving a bequest successful authorities service, overseas argumentation and the equilibrium of powerfulness betwixt the branches of government, and leaving a individual stamp connected a presidency greater than immoderate vice president earlier him.