The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as among the most significant occupants of that office in US history. Whereas many VPs were limited to peripheral or symbolic positions, Cheney wielded enormous power during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the relaxed president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-cons that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any unresponsive planes approaching the government building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, making him become intent on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a memorandum detailing situations in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be postured to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's countenance that each person had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that operates invisibly come out of his lair? It's a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests followed him throughout his time as VP. Even though he had minimal expertise 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 most substantial oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts worth multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
