The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as among the most significant holders of that office in US history. Whereas many vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, making him become determined on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Actions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I had faith at the time and I maintain that stance now."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had composed a memo detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House generally inclined on executing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his father's face that everyone had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were either insubstantial or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to apprehend the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the corner that remains unseen emerge from his lair? That is a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
