The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered arguably the most significant incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although many second-in-commands had to settle for minor or symbolic functions, Cheney exercised huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently called as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a group of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any unidentified planes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the attacks changed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do then. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance today."
But even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, at the very least," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document setting out situations in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "obtaining essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," explicitly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's face that each person had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating attacking Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were both thin or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his domain? This represents a advantageous way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had little experience in commerce but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements worth substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm grew from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
