One-time Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Look Back on His Influential Time in Office

The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most powerful holders of that position in US history. Although countless second-in-commands were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often called as the "actual president".

Bush objected to such a characterisation and stated the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a team because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.

The Post-9/11 Era

At the head of a contingent of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the downing of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become determined on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Debated Decisions

He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the right thing to do then. I had faith back then and I hold that view now."

But even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior 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 post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a document outlining situations in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.

Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.

Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's visage that all visitors had to step on.

Interrogation Methods

Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.

Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."

Public Image

Cheney took pleasure in monikers given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his domain? That is a effective way to operate, actually."

Corporate Connections

Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.

In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling multiple billions.

It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the firm increased from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty