The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most powerful occupants of that position in the nation's history. While numerous VPs were limited to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded huge power during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often called as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and said the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were peers. Despite such protestations, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the destruction of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the strikes transformed him, leading him to become intent on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, or 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 misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I believe it now."
However even then, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to capture the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? This represents a nice way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests pursued him through his period as VP. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
