The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Whereas countless second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite these objections, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the downing of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I had faith back then and I hold that view today."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a memorandum detailing situations in which US concerns might be endangered (including "access to essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to operate alone when collective action prove impossible," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were whether thin or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the torture, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the bastards who took the lives of 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 recognition."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? That is a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 during his time as military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
