The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. While numerous second-in-commands were confined to marginal or symbolic roles, Cheney held enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become determined on revenge. Together with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do then. I believed it at the time and I hold that view presently."
However during that period, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he wrote later "obvious failure, inaction, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo setting out circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (featuring "obtaining essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's face that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or totally deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed labels assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his domain? It's a effective way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the corporation rose from his quarter-million dollars during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
