The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential holders of that position in US history. Whereas many vice-presidents were confined to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults transformed him, causing him to be focused on retribution. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced then and I hold that view today."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "obtaining essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be positioned to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a plot to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's face that each person had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were either weak or completely misleading. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and create programmes to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers given to him by detractors such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the corner that remains unseen emerge from his lair? It's a effective way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as VP. Although he had little experience in business but good contacts in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US contracts worth billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the company grew from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
