The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most powerful holders of that office in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were confined to marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in official appearances as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating planes nearing the government building.
Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, making him become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I hold that view presently."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, at a minimum," he later wrote "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and establish initiatives to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume 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 background that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? That is a effective way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests followed him through his period as vice-president. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US deals worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the company rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
