The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most influential holders of that position in the nation's history. Although countless second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney held huge sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and said the dynamic was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unidentified aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes transformed him, causing him to be determined on revenge. Together with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It represented the right thing to do back then. I had faith at the time and I hold that view today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a document detailing situations in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that each person had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by detractors such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that nobody ever sees emerge from his hole? It's a effective way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
