The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant holders of the vice-presidency in US history. While numerous second-in-commands had to settle for minor or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, invariably referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it suggested that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified planes nearing the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, causing him to be intent on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the waterboarding of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I hold that view presently."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a memorandum detailing situations in which American interests might be endangered (including "availability of crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head 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 involvement in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance 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 additionally resented that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or entirely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the torture, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his lair? This represents a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as vice-president. While he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the firm increased from his previous salary while defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty
