The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered one of the most significant incumbents of that office in the nation's history. Whereas countless vice-presidents were limited to marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the relaxed president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks 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. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any unresponsive planes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, making him become determined on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion 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 playing a role.
Disputed Actions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty reports repeated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I believe it today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had composed a document detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (including "availability of vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the president, 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 lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's countenance that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were either weak or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the background that operates invisibly come out of his domain? This represents a effective way to function, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the corporation increased from his previous salary when he was military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty