The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered one of the most significant occupants of that office in the nation's history. While countless VPs were confined to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the shooting down of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It was the proper decision to do then. I believed it then and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum detailing situations in which US concerns might be threatened (including "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be orchestrated," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the presidency generally inclined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a plot to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and establish procedures to catch the bastards who killed 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 recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the shadows that operates invisibly come out of his hole? This represents a effective way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in business but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the corporation increased from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package worth more than $20m|twenty
