The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of that office in American history. Although countless VPs were confined to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president pliable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the downing of any unidentified aircraft approaching the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, causing him to be determined on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view presently."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (encompassing "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a plot to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his parent's face that everyone had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were both weak or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and establish procedures to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? It's a nice way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. While he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the firm increased from his $258,394 while military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
