The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Although numerous vice-presidents were limited to marginal or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the downing of any non-communicating planes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Policies
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance today."
However even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, inaction, and recklessness: potentially, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a document detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (including "obtaining essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," explicitly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House generally inclined on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly leave his hole? It's a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him through his period as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
