The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of that office in American history. Although numerous vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney held huge sway during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public settings as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it suggested that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the easygoing president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a memo detailing situations in which American interests might be compromised (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's visage that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by detractors such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that operates invisibly leave his hole? That is a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him through his period as vice-president. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the corporation increased from his $258,394 while military head to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty
