The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most powerful incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. Whereas many VPs were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney held substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and said the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes transformed him, making him become focused on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the harsh treatment of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view presently."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a memo setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been behind a plot to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were whether weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in monikers imposed on him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the White House. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm increased from his $258,394 while defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
