Ex- Vice-President Dick Cheney: An Examination on His Influential Government Service

The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most influential incumbents of that position in US history. While many vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney held substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly called as the "real president".

Bush disliked such a characterisation and stated the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of administrative determinations.

A Aftermath of 9/11

In charge of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating planes heading toward the Capitol building.

Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become determined on retribution. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.

Debated Actions

He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced back then and I believe it now."

But even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."

Broader Context

Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had composed a memo detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush too had arrived in the Oval Office vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.

Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to tread upon.

Questioning Techniques

Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement supporting striking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were both thin or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.

Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."

Public Persona

Cheney took pleasure in labels assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? It's a nice way to work, actually."

Business Interests

Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him through his period as second-in-command. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals totaling multiple billions.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm rose from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty