The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of that office in the nation's history. Although many second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney held enormous power during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a team because it suggested that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any unidentified planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, leading him to become intent on retaliation. In conjunction with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance presently."
However during that period, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had composed a memo outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," explicitly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken advocating striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were either insubstantial or entirely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and establish procedures to catch the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly come out of his domain? This represents a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the company rose from his previous salary while defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
