The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. While countless second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney held enormous influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and said the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it suggested that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of neo-cons that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any unresponsive airplanes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be focused on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the correct action to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been sacked by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the torture, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his hole? This represents a nice way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests pursued him during his tenure as VP. Even though he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the White House. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the firm rose from his $258,394 when he was military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
