The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered one of the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. Whereas countless VPs were confined to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney found the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the enhanced interrogation of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It was the correct action to do back then. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance now."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at the very least," he wrote later "obvious failure, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had drafted a memo detailing circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to operate alone when collective action cannot be orchestrated," explicitly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House generally inclined on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly referencing agency briefings that were both weak or totally deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his hole? That is a advantageous way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as VP. Although he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the firm increased from his previous salary while defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
