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

The late US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful incumbents of that position in American history. Whereas countless VPs were limited to minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly described as the "actual president".

Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.

A Period Following the Attacks

Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a session at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the government building.

Cheney said the attacks transformed him, making him become determined on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.

Debated Actions

He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading reports repeated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It represented the proper decision to do then. I was convinced back then and I believe it today."

But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."

Wider Perspective

Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a memorandum detailing situations in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be positioned to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly citing military moves against Iraq.

Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office generally inclined on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.

Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to step on.

Interrogation Methods

However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were whether thin or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.

Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."

Public Persona

Cheney reveled in monikers imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the journalist'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 sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his lair? This represents a nice way to function, truthfully."

Corporate Connections

Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as VP. Even though he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals totaling substantial sums.

It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty