The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered among the most powerful incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents were confined to marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it suggested that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any unidentified planes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes altered his perspective, making him become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Actions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I had faith back then and I hold that view today."
However even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "obvious failure, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum outlining situations in which American interests might be threatened (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were both weak or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the findings as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to catch the individuals who killed 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 credit."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his hole? This represents a nice way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his business interests followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in commerce but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm rose from his quarter-million dollars while defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
