The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most influential occupants of that position in the nation's history. Whereas numerous second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded huge power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the government building.
Cheney said the attacks changed him, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading reports repeated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It represented the right thing to do at that time. I believed it back then and I hold that view now."
But during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document detailing situations in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House generally inclined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's face that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting attacking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers assigned to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that remains unseen emerge from his hole? That is a advantageous way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships pursued him through his period as vice-president. Although he had little experience in business but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
