The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful holders of that office in American history. Whereas countless VPs had to settle for minor or ceremonial positions, Cheney held substantial power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, always calling him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president pliable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become determined on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
However during that period, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memorandum detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's face that everyone had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were both insubstantial or completely deceptive. He backed what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place programmes to apprehend the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly come out of his domain? It's a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as VP. Even though he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his time at the company grew from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
