The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most influential incumbents of that office in American history. While many VPs were limited to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney exercised substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any unidentified aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become intent on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on faulty reports circulated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It proved to be the right thing to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance now."
Yet during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a memorandum outlining situations in which American interests might be compromised (encompassing "access to crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, frequently citing intelligence reports that were whether thin or entirely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in labels assigned to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, 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 nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? This represents a advantageous way to function, actually."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships pursued him throughout his time as VP. Even though he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm grew from his previous salary while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at more than $20m|twenty
