The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most powerful occupants of that position in the nation's history. Whereas countless second-in-commands were confined to minor or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the relaxed president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any unresponsive planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults transformed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a document detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief 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 Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were whether thin or entirely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the shadows that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? This represents a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had limited background in business but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his period at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
