The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential incumbents of that office in the nation's history. Whereas numerous VPs had to settle for marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the dynamic was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a contingent of neo-cons that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a session at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any unidentified planes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults transformed him, making him become focused on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I had faith at the time and I hold that view presently."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he later wrote "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memo setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "access to vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the White House generally inclined on executing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of lowering America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's countenance that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were whether weak or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in labels imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that nobody ever sees leave his domain? It's a nice way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as VP. While he had little experience in business but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his $258,394 while defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
