The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most significant occupants of that position in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were limited to minor or ceremonial positions, Cheney held enormous power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified planes approaching the government building.
Cheney said the assaults changed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on faulty intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the correct action to do then. I had faith back then and I hold that view presently."
But even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo outlining scenarios in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the presidency vaguely intent on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his father's countenance that each person had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to apprehend the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his domain? This represents a nice way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in security, especially 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 chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm rose from his quarter-million dollars while military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
