The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential occupants of that position in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were confined to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney held enormous influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it suggested that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unidentified planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It was the correct action to do back then. I had faith back then and I believe it today."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, ineptitude, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a document detailing situations in which American interests might be compromised (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to operate alone when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on executing what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's countenance that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume 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 nobody ever sees leave his hole? This represents a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in business but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the corporation grew from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
