The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered one of the most significant incumbents of that position in the nation's history. While many vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised huge sway during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and said the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any unidentified aircraft approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on retaliation. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith back then and I believe it now."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had composed a memorandum outlining scenarios in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his predecessor's visage that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were whether thin or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in monikers given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his business interests followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty
