Dick Cheney

American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. His tenure was often called the most powerful vice presidency in American history, with many pundits and historians noting that he was the first Vice President to be more powerful than the presidents they served under. Cheney previously served as White House chief of staff for President Gerald Ford, the U.S. representative for Wyoming's at-large congressional district from 1979 to 1989, and as the 17th United States secretary of defense in the administration of President George H. W. Bush. He was also considered by many to be the architect of the Iraq War.

A rock-solid conservative, Cheney opposed abortion rights, gun-control, the Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act. He voted against Environmental Cleanups and supported Oil Drilling in Alaska's wilderness. He was a staunch supporter of Defense, and the production of chemical weapons. He supported the death penalty. He favored raising the Social Security retirement age from 65 to 67 and opposed coverage of long-term care for the chronically ill. He opposed the Equal Rights Amendment and supported prayer in public schools.

Cheney attended Yale University on a scholarship but dropped out after three semesters. He took a job with the Utilities Company working as a lineman for two years before resuming his education at the University of Wyoming, his future wife’s home. Lynne Ann Vincent was born on 14 August 1941 in Casper, Wyoming. At school, Dick played football and was senior class president, and Lynne was homecoming queen. They married on 29 August 1964 and had two daughters, Elizabeth "Liz" and Mary.

After a B.A. in 1965 and an M.A. in 1966 in Political Science, Cheney left school in 1968 without completing his Ph.D. dissertation. The family moved to the Washington, DC area in 1969 when Cheney took a Congressional internship.