The former US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. Although numerous VPs were confined to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised enormous influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks altered his perspective, making him become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced then and I believe it today."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a memo setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "access to crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were whether insubstantial or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, 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 quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his hole? It's a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the firm grew from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package worth more than $20m|twenty
