The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered one of the most influential occupants of that position in American history. Although numerous vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and said the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a team because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any unresponsive airplanes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults transformed him, causing him to be focused on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance presently."
However even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had composed a memorandum setting out situations in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were either weak or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and establish programmes to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing 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: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a nice way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the company grew from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth more than $20m|twenty
