The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most influential occupants of that position in American history. Although countless second-in-commands were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "true president".
Bush disliked that description and said the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults changed him, leading him to become focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do then. I believed it at the time and I hold that view presently."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had written a memo detailing scenarios in which American interests might be endangered (including "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of lowering America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were both weak or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? It's a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Dispute over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the company increased from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
