The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most powerful incumbents of that position in American history. Although numerous second-in-commands were confined to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often called as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and stated the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified planes nearing the government building.
Cheney said the attacks transformed him, leading him to become determined on retribution. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Actions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I believed it then and I hold that view presently."
However even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a memo outlining circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (including "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were both thin or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by opponents such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen come out of his lair? This represents a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had little experience in business but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm increased from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
