The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered arguably the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Although countless second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in official appearances as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were equals. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any unresponsive planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced back then and I believe it presently."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he later wrote "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (encompassing "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's participation in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's face that everyone had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were whether thin or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and establish initiatives to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by detractors such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his hole? It's a effective way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as VP. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his time at the firm grew from his quarter-million dollars while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
