The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in US history. Whereas countless vice-presidents were confined to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney wielded enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always calling him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a team because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
Yet during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, unfitness, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum setting out circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken advocating attacking Iraq, repeatedly referencing agency briefings that were whether thin or totally deceptive. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in labels given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the shadows that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? This represents a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his business interests followed him through his period as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the firm grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty
