The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents had to settle for minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults transformed him, making him become focused on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I believed it back then and I hold that view today."
However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: at worst, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a memorandum setting out situations in which national priorities might be endangered (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were whether thin or totally deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no useful information had been obtained through the torture, Cheney rejected the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees leave his domain? It's a effective way to function, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as VP. Although he had little experience in commerce but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements valued at billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
