The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as among the most influential incumbents of that office in the nation's history. Whereas numerous VPs were limited to marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney held substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently called as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their association as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft nearing the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, causing him to be focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the right thing to do then. I had faith at the time and I hold that view today."
But during that period, there were dissenting voices 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 not retained from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, ineptitude, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (including "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office generally inclined on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a plot to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were both weak or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? That is a effective way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the company grew from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth more than $20m|twenty
