The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered arguably the most influential occupants of that office in the nation's history. Whereas many second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney held enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in official appearances 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 on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, causing him to be determined on retribution. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith then and I believe it presently."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a memorandum setting out situations in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a plot to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that each person had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the background that operates invisibly leave his hole? This represents a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as VP. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the company rose from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling more than $20m|twenty
