The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most influential holders of that office in American history. Whereas many VPs were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised huge sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked that description and stated the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a faction of neo-cons that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, causing him to be determined on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the harsh treatment of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a memo outlining situations in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be orchestrated," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the presidency generally inclined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that everyone had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the findings as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to capture the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? This represents a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his business interests pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the company increased from his previous salary when he was military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
