The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in US history. While numerous second-in-commands had to settle for marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the relaxed president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a contingent of neo-cons that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes approaching the government building.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, leading him to become intent on revenge. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the right decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I was convinced then and I believe it today."
However even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had composed a memorandum setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's countenance that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly referencing intelligence reports that were whether thin or completely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen leave his domain? That is a effective way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as VP. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but good contacts in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the corporation increased from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
