The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most powerful holders of that office in US history. Although countless second-in-commands were confined to minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney held enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly described as the "real president".
Bush disliked that description and stated the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any non-communicating planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the attacks changed him, causing him to be intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the correct action to do back then. I had faith then and I believe it now."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document outlining situations in which American interests might be compromised (including "availability of vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were whether weak or totally deceptive. He backed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to capture the bastards who murdered 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 credit."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in monikers imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that remains unseen come out of his lair? That is a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as VP. Although he had limited background in commerce but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the firm grew from his quarter-million dollars while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
