The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most influential occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Whereas many vice-presidents had to settle for minor or symbolic roles, Cheney held substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and stated the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a team because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the correct action to do then. I had faith at the time and I hold that view now."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I observed, at a minimum," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a document detailing situations in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "access to crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the Oval Office generally inclined on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his predecessor's face that everyone had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were both weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the corner that remains unseen leave his domain? That is a nice way to function, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars while military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
