The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Whereas many vice-presidents were limited to minor or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and stated the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any unidentified planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It was the proper decision to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance today."
However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum outlining scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (including "access to crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were whether weak or completely deceptive. He backed what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and torture.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels assigned to him by opponents such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his domain? That is a effective way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth more than $20m|twenty
