The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most powerful incumbents of that position in US history. Although countless VPs were confined to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney held substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, 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, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the proper decision to do then. I believed it back then and I hold that view presently."
But even then, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a memorandum setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (encompassing "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House generally inclined on executing what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to capture the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his domain? That is a nice way to work, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his business interests followed him through his period as VP. Although he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US deals valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his period at the corporation increased from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
