Henry Kissinger, one of the most dominant figures of the Watergate and Vietnam War eras, has died.
Former presidential adviser Henry Kissinger has died, according to a statement posted on his website, bringing to a close one of the most polarizing and influential diplomatic lives in U.S. history.
He died Wednesday at his home in Connecticut, said a statement by his consulting firm. He was 100 years old.
The German-born academic was the only American official ever to concurrently serve as both secretary of state and White House national security adviser, giving him immense power during the Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford presidencies. That helped him end the U.S. war in Vietnam and to shape American foreign policy toward the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War.
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Kissinger, a giant among 20th-century American statesmen, was often in the spotlight more frequently than the presidents he served. I remember him popping up in society stories almost as if he were Hollywood royalty. As the Journal story goes on to say, “In half a century, Kissinger never lost his love of the public spotlight and global politicking.”
Kissinger was the kind of intellectual and towering figure that, sadly, isn’t seen much in the upper echelon of American politics anymore.