The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as arguably the most significant incumbents of that office in US history. While many second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded substantial power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently referring to him in public settings as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes 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 secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any unresponsive aircraft nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, leading him to become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance today."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum outlining scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were both thin or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? This represents a effective way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had little experience in commerce but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the company increased from his $258,394 when he was military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
