The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most significant occupants of that position in American history. Although many VPs were limited to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and stated the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks changed him, making him become focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading reports repeated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It proved to be the right thing to do then. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance now."
But even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: potentially, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a memo setting out situations in which US concerns might be endangered (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on executing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were either insubstantial or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by opponents such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his domain? It's a effective way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Dispute over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in business but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his previous salary when he was military head to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling more than $20m|twenty
