One-time Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Look Back on the Impactful Political Career

The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered arguably the most powerful incumbents of that office in American history. Although countless VPs had to settle for minor or ceremonial positions, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".

Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in official appearances as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.

A Aftermath of 9/11

Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating planes approaching the US Capitol.

Cheney stated the assaults transformed him, making him become determined on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.

Debated Actions

He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the proper decision to do then. I believed it back then and I believe it now."

But even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: at worst, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."

Broader Context

Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memo detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (including "access to vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush also had arrived in the presidency generally inclined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations 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 furthermore disliked that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's countenance that each person had to step on.

Investigation Approaches

However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were either insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and torture.

Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."

Public Persona

Cheney took pleasure in labels given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication 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 operates invisibly leave his domain? That is a advantageous way to function, in fact."

Corporate Connections

Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.

In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts valued at billions.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars while defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty