The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as one of the most significant holders of that office in the nation's history. Although many VPs were limited to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney exercised huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on retaliation. In conjunction with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty reports circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced then and I believe it now."
However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum detailing scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of lowering America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his father's face that all visitors had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous advocating invading Iraq, frequently citing intelligence reports that were both weak or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had come from the torture, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? This represents a effective way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in business but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
