The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered one of the most significant holders of that position in American history. Although countless vice-presidents had to settle for minor or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the relationship was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney said the strikes transformed him, causing him to be intent on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading reports repeated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had composed a memo setting out circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be positioned to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's face that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, consistently citing information documents that were either weak or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames assigned to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating 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: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that remains unseen come out of his lair? It's a effective way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as VP. While he had limited background in business but established relationships in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the corporation increased from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
