The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered among the most powerful occupants of that office in American history. Although many vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and stated the dynamic was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, consistently calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention 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 estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the correct action to do back then. I was convinced then and I hold that view today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document outlining situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be postured to act independently when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired 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 stated his objective of reducing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's face that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, consistently referencing information documents that were both weak or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the findings as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place programmes to apprehend the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the background that remains unseen emerge from his hole? That is a effective way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm rose from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at more than $20m|twenty
