The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as among the most significant holders of the vice-presidency in US history. Whereas countless VPs were confined to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney exercised huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly called as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and said the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite these denials, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes nearing the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks transformed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Decisions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the right thing to do then. I believed it then and I hold that view now."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memo detailing situations in which American interests might be endangered (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be prepared to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication 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 background that operates invisibly leave his lair? That is a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had limited background in corporate affairs but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his period at the corporation increased from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
