The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Whereas countless second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney held enormous power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly called as the "real president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, causing him to be intent on retaliation. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I believed it then and I hold that view presently."
But even then, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and recklessness: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had composed a document detailing situations in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were both weak or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen come out of his lair? This represents a nice way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements worth billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty
