Ten years ago, the Cheney International Center launched on the University of Wyoming’s campus. On Friday, former Vice President Dick Cheney and wife Lynne gave a talk on American politics to mark the anniversary.
The international center was built using a more than $3 million donation from the Cheneys, which was matched with funds from the state. The donation was also used to create a scholarship for UW students studying abroad, and to date, it has supported more than 2,000 students.
At the event, Dick Cheney remarked that studying abroad can offer a unique glimpse into global affairs for college students, and makes for better citizens.
“The issues we’ve got to deal with and address are bigger and in some cases more threatening than they’ve ever been,” said Cheney. “I think all of us citizens have an obligation to do everything we can to educate ourselves enough so that we make those difficult decisions that we are all are tasked with making, we know a little bit about the event.”
When asked what he would do differently in his career if he had the chance, Cheney brought up North Korea, saying he wished the Bush Administration would have destroyed a nuclear reactor built by North Korea and sold to Syria.
“I think if you look at history, diplomacy isn’t very useful in terms of persuading rogue regimes from developing or proliferating nuclear weapons. What works is military force, and the threat of military force,” said Cheney.
The current Secretary of Defense for the United States, James Mattis, has pushed for a diplomatic approach to North Korea.
Both Dick and Lynne Cheney grew up in Casper, and Dick Cheney attended the University of Wyoming.
