Former Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on the Influential Political Career

The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as among the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. While countless VPs had to settle for marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney exercised substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "actual president".

Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.

A Post-9/11 Era

Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive planes nearing the government building.

Cheney stated the attacks changed him, causing him to be focused on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Disputed Decisions

He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I hold that view now."

However even then, there were opposing views at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I saw, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."

Broader Context

Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum detailing circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.

Bush also had entered the presidency vaguely intent on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following 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 announced his objective of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.

Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to walk over.

Investigation Approaches

Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were both weak or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.

Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and establish procedures to capture the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."

External Perception

Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by detractors such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen leave his domain? It's a effective way to operate, actually."

Commercial Ties

Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and top executive.

In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements worth substantial sums.

It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary during his time as military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty