The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered arguably the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were limited to peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a team because it suggested that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become determined on revenge. Along with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on misleading intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do back then. I had faith at the time and I believe it now."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," explicitly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his parent's countenance that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were both weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney rejected the findings as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in monikers imposed on him by critics such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that remains unseen emerge from his hole? That is a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had little experience in business but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm increased from his quarter-million dollars while military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
