The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most significant incumbents of that position in American history. While numerous vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney exercised huge sway during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas 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 assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do back then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance today."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had drafted a memo outlining situations in which American interests might be threatened (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on executing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing 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: "Am I the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees emerge from his hole? This represents a advantageous way to function, in fact."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests pursued him through his period as VP. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US agreements worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his period at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
