The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as among the most influential occupants of that position in the nation's history. Whereas many VPs were limited to peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and stated the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-cons that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I believed it then and I maintain that stance now."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum outlining scenarios in which American interests might be endangered (including "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures prove impossible," explicitly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of lowering America's engagement in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were either weak or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to apprehend the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that remains unseen leave his hole? It's a effective way to operate, actually."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as VP. While he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the company increased from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at more than $20m|twenty
