The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Whereas countless second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently called as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, causing him to be determined on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Decisions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I had faith back then and I hold that view today."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had drafted a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his parent's countenance that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and establish programmes to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? That is a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as VP. Even though he had little experience in commerce but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the corporation rose from his quarter-million dollars while military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty
