The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered one of the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While countless vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, causing him to be determined on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I believe it now."
But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "obvious failure, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo outlining scenarios in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently referencing information documents that were whether insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of waterboarding and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and create procedures to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker'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 malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly come out of his domain? This represents a effective way to function, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Although he had little experience in business but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US deals totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
