The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most significant incumbents of that office in American history. While numerous second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in official appearances as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any non-communicating aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, leading him to become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I had faith then and I believe it now."
But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had composed a document detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vehement supporting attacking Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were either weak or entirely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author'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 remains unseen emerge from his lair? That is a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but good contacts in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the firm increased from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
