The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most influential incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it implied that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any unresponsive airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults transformed him, causing him to be determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, at a minimum," he later wrote "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, lying, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a document outlining circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's countenance that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were either thin or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author'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 sinister strategist in the corner that nobody ever sees leave his hole? This represents a effective way to function, in fact."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as VP. While he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs 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 chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 while military head to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
