The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most powerful occupants of that office in US history. While numerous VPs were limited to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and said the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any unidentified airplanes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney said the attacks transformed him, leading him to become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to seize 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 estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on faulty information circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it then and I hold that view presently."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum setting out circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a plot to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were either weak or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the corner that operates invisibly leave his hole? It's a nice way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm rose from his $258,394 when he was military head to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
