The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most influential holders of that office in American history. Whereas countless VPs were confined to peripheral or symbolic positions, Cheney wielded huge power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and said the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, always addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, making him become intent on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Actions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I believe it presently."
But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: at worst, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the Oval Office generally inclined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that everyone had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement supporting attacking Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or totally deceptive. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Answering 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 stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in monikers imposed on him by detractors such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his lair? It's a effective way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
