The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful holders of that office in the nation's history. While many vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised enormous influence during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "real president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a team because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified planes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults changed him, leading him to become determined on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I had faith then and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet 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 region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he later wrote "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were either weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and establish programmes to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume 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 corner that remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a effective way to function, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the company rose from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty