The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most powerful holders of that position in American history. Although numerous vice-presidents were confined to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded enormous power during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the relaxed president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on misleading intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the right thing to do then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance presently."
However during that period, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be prepared to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his predecessor's face that each person had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken advocating striking Iraq, frequently citing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to apprehend the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? This represents a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as VP. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but good contacts in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
