The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in American history. Although many vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney exercised substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and said the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a partnership because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the relaxed president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, making him become intent on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty information circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance now."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had composed a document setting out circumstances in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's countenance that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were both thin or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in monikers imposed on him by opponents such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the corner that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him through his period as second-in-command. Although he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US deals worth multiple billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his tenure at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
