The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful holders of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or figurehead positions, Cheney held substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and said the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their partnership as a team because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, making him become focused on retaliation. In conjunction 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 invasion of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the proper decision to do then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance presently."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: at worst, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had composed a memorandum detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (including "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were both weak or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the torture, Cheney rejected the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and establish programmes to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by critics such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that remains unseen leave his lair? That is a effective way to function, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had little experience in business but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
