The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential occupants of that office in US history. While countless second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any unidentified airplanes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retaliation. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on faulty information echoed by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a document detailing situations in which US concerns might be compromised (including "availability of crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the White House generally inclined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were whether weak or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his hole? This represents a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations accompanied him through his period as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the firm increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
