The former US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential occupants of that position in American history. Although countless VPs were confined to peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney held substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the relationship was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes altered his perspective, making him become intent on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance now."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had composed a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be compromised (including "obtaining vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to operate alone when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the White House vaguely intent on executing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following 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 announced his intention of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's countenance that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, consistently citing information documents that were whether weak or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing 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 sinister strategist in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? It's a nice way to function, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth more than $20m|twenty
