The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most significant occupants of that office in US history. Whereas countless VPs were confined to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced then and I hold that view presently."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, as a baseline," he later wrote "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had written a document setting out situations in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting 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 defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were either thin or totally deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that remains unseen leave his lair? It's a nice way to work, actually."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests followed him through his period as VP. Even though he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the company increased from his $258,394 while defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
