Ex- Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on His Influential Political Career

The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most significant holders of that office in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were confined to peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "true president".

Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always calling him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president malleable on a broad range of governmental choices.

The Post-9/11 Era

Leading of a faction 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 response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a session at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.

Cheney stated the strikes transformed him, leading him to become intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Controversial Decisions

He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."

But even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum detailing situations in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.

Bush also had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed 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 stated his intention of reducing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed military action against Iraq.

Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's face that each person had to step on.

Investigation Approaches

Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting information documents that were either insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and torture.

Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."

Public Persona

Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that remains unseen come out of his domain? It's a nice way to function, in fact."

Commercial Ties

Debate over his business interests followed him during his tenure as VP. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling substantial sums.

It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm rose from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty