The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most powerful incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney held substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and said the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the right thing to do then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document detailing situations in which national priorities might be threatened (including "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's visage that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were either insubstantial or completely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? That is a effective way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him throughout his time as VP. Although he had minimal expertise in business but good contacts in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation rose from his $258,394 during his time as military head to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty
