One-time Vice-President Dick Cheney: A Look Back on His Influential Government Service

The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most significant holders of that position in American history. Although countless VPs were confined to peripheral or symbolic positions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often called as the "actual president".

Bush resented such a characterisation and said the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a wide array of administrative determinations.

The Post-9/11 Era

In charge of a contingent of neo-cons that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any unresponsive planes heading toward the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, causing him to be determined on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.

Debated Policies

He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading information echoed by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith then and I believe it today."

Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document outlining scenarios in which national priorities might be endangered (including "access to crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.

Bush also had assumed the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.

Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's face that all visitors had to tread upon.

Interrogation Methods

But it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly citing information documents that were either insubstantial or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and physical pressure.

Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of praise."

Public Image

Cheney took pleasure in labels imposed on him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees leave his lair? That is a effective way to work, actually."

Corporate Connections

Controversy over his business interests followed him through his period as VP. While he had limited background in business but strong connections in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.

In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling billions.

It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm rose from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty