The former US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. Although many VPs were confined to minor or symbolic functions, Cheney held substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, making him become determined on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the right decision. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I had faith then and I believe it presently."
However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memo detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," particularly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the presidency vaguely intent on executing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, consistently citing information documents that were either insubstantial or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the torture, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create procedures to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in labels given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? That is a nice way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in commerce but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
