The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as among the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Although countless vice-presidents were confined to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney exercised substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in public settings as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a group of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks altered his perspective, making him become intent on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
However even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had written a memo detailing circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the White House generally inclined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting intelligence reports that were whether thin or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives 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."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his hole? That is a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him through his period as vice-president. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty
