Ex- Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on His Impactful Government Service

The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most powerful incumbents of that position in American history. Whereas countless VPs were limited to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".

Bush resented that description and stated the dynamic was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite these denials, Cheney found the relaxed president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.

A Period Following the Attacks

At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.

Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.

Disputed Policies

He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it back then and I believe it today."

But even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and graft."

Broader Context

Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be endangered (including "obtaining vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.

Bush too had entered the presidency vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.

Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's visage that all visitors had to step on.

Investigation Approaches

However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were whether thin or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and torture.

Answering a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to catch the bastards who murdered 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 credit."

Public Persona

Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his domain? That is a advantageous way to operate, actually."

Business Interests

Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.

In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at multiple billions.

It made him rich. His annual income during his tenure at the corporation rose from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty