The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered among the most significant incumbents of that position in American history. Whereas countless second-in-commands had to settle for marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney held substantial sway during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and said the dynamic was more complex. He noted that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the downing of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it then and I hold that view now."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had drafted a memo detailing circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency vaguely intent on executing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of lowering America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were both weak or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no useful information had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his domain? This represents a advantageous way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests pursued him through his period as VP. Although he had limited background in business but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the corporation grew from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
