The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most powerful incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although many second-in-commands had to settle for marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised enormous influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently referring to him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the waterboarding of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
However even then, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a memorandum detailing situations in which American interests might be threatened (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that each person had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his domain? It's a effective way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as VP. Even though he had limited background in business but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements totaling multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
