The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were confined to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney held huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the destruction of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the attacks changed him, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Policies
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It proved to be the right thing to do then. I was convinced back then and I believe it presently."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, falsehoods, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were both weak or completely misleading. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his hole? That is a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as VP. Even though he had little experience 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 corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the company grew from his previous salary when he was defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
