The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Although numerous second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the destruction of any unresponsive planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, leading him to become focused on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the correct action to do back then. I was convinced back then and I believe it today."
Yet even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a memorandum setting out circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (encompassing "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's face that each person had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the torture, Cheney rejected the findings as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the perpetrators who took the lives of 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 credit."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the sinister strategist in the shadows that operates invisibly come out of his hole? This represents a effective way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his period at the company rose from his previous salary while military head to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
