One-time VP Dick Cheney: An Examination on the Impactful Government Service

The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant incumbents of that office in American history. Although many second-in-commands were limited to marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".

Bush objected to that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.

A Period Following the Attacks

In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any unresponsive aircraft approaching the government building.

Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, causing him to be focused on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.

Disputed Actions

He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It was the correct action to do back then. I was convinced then and I hold that view now."

However during that period, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and graft."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had composed a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "availability of crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush additionally had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.

Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a plot to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's face that everyone had to step on.

Interrogation Methods

However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were either insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.

Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to capture the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."

Public Persona

Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that nobody ever sees leave his hole? It's a nice way to function, in fact."

Corporate Connections

Debate over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as VP. While he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.

In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts valued at substantial sums.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his period at the company increased from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty