The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. While countless second-in-commands were confined to marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their association as a team because it implied that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the easygoing president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of conservative hawks that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating planes approaching the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I had faith at the time and I believe it presently."
But during that period, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: at worst, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had composed a memo detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his predecessor's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were either weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to capture the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in monikers given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that remains unseen come out of his hole? That is a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary during his time as military head to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
