The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as one of the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. Although numerous second-in-commands were confined to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney held huge sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly called as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of neo-cons that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults transformed him, making him become intent on retribution. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view today."
But during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a document outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind striking Iraq, frequently citing intelligence reports that were whether thin or completely deceptive. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the torture, Cheney rejected the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the duo, 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 leave his lair? It's a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him through his period as second-in-command. Even though he had limited background in commerce but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the firm rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
