The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents were limited to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always referring to him in public as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these objections, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for 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 taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating planes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become focused on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a document setting out situations in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to act independently when collective action prove impossible," particularly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the presidency vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a conspiracy to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's countenance that each person had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were whether weak or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees leave his hole? It's a advantageous way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as VP. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the company grew from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
