The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most powerful occupants of that position in American history. Although countless vice-presidents were confined to minor or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised enormous power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly called as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was respectful, always calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer 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 elementary school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith then and I hold that view today."
But even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, carelessness, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memo setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his parent's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting invading Iraq, repeatedly referencing intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to capture the individuals 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 praise."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in nicknames assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that remains unseen emerge from his domain? That is a advantageous way to function, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him through his period as vice-president. While he had limited background in business but strong connections in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
