The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most powerful holders of that position in American history. Although many VPs were limited to marginal or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their association as a team because it suggested that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a contingent 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 answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, making him become focused on retribution. Along with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Policies
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the waterboarding of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
Yet even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a memo outlining circumstances in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be prepared to act independently when collective action prove impossible," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken advocating striking Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were both insubstantial or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his domain? It's a effective way to operate, actually."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as vice-president. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but good contacts in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US contracts worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation increased from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
