The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most significant incumbents of that position in US history. Although numerous second-in-commands had to settle for minor or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge power during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the relaxed president malleable on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Actions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view today."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a memorandum outlining situations in which national priorities might be compromised (featuring "access to crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking 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 establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his parent's countenance that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were whether weak or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the findings as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a shadow power 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: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his domain? This represents a advantageous way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm grew from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
