The former US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most influential occupants of that office in US history. Whereas many second-in-commands were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised huge sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly called as the "real president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always calling him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the assaults altered his perspective, making him become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on faulty reports repeated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the Oval Office generally inclined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his parent's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were either thin or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers assigned to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling 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? It's a advantageous way to function, in fact."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as VP. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements valued at billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the company rose from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty
