The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant holders of that office in the nation's history. Whereas many VPs were confined to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney exercised substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "actual president".
Bush disliked that description and said the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always calling him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a group of neo-cons that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on retaliation. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I believed it then and I believe it today."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a document outlining scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be postured to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his father's face that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were whether weak or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to apprehend the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a effective way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US agreements worth substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his period at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
