The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential occupants of that office in American history. Although numerous VPs were limited to marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "actual president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in official appearances as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on retaliation. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view presently."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had composed a memorandum setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been sacked 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 stated his plan of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were either weak or entirely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the background that operates invisibly come out of his domain? This represents a effective way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him through his period as vice-president. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but good contacts in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
