The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant incumbents of that position in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were limited to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a team because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a session at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, making him become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the correct action to do then. I had faith back then and I believe it today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, negligence, and recklessness: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, consistently quoting information documents that were both insubstantial or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no useful information had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the findings as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by opponents such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his domain? This represents a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation grew from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
