The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most significant occupants of that office in US history. Whereas countless vice-presidents were limited to marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney held substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and said the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in official appearances as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes transformed him, leading him to become focused on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, as a baseline," he later wrote "obvious failure, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, ineptitude, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to act independently when collective action prove impossible," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his predecessor's face that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating attacking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were whether weak or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
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 sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that nobody ever sees come out of his domain? This represents a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but good contacts in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars while military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
