The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential occupants of that position in US history. While many vice-presidents were confined to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often called as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a collaboration because it implied that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the attacks changed him, making him become focused on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty information echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do then. I had faith then and I hold that view presently."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he later wrote "obvious failure, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a memo outlining situations in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement behind striking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were both thin or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish programmes to capture the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a effective way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as VP. While he had limited background in business but strong connections in military, 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 chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US contracts totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the firm rose from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
