The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although numerous vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney exercised enormous power during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any unidentified airplanes nearing the government building.
Cheney said the assaults changed him, making him become focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I had faith then and I believe it presently."
However even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had composed a document outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (encompassing "access to vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the finance chief 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 engagement in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking 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 most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were whether thin or entirely misleading. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish initiatives to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? This represents a nice way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as VP. Although he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals valued at billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the company grew from his previous salary while defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
