The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as among the most powerful holders of the vice-presidency in US history. Although countless vice-presidents were confined to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a faction of neo-cons that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, making him become determined on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading information echoed by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance today."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: at worst, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (including "access to crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were whether weak or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author'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 sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to function, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had little experience in commerce but established relationships in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
