The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as arguably the most significant incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any unresponsive planes approaching the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I had faith then and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a document outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's countenance that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken advocating attacking Iraq, consistently referencing information documents that were whether thin or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create procedures to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers assigned to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker'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 corner that remains unseen leave his hole? That is a advantageous way to function, actually."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his business interests pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had little experience in commerce but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US contracts worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the firm increased from his previous salary during his time as military head to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at over $20m|twenty
