The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. While countless second-in-commands were confined to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of neo-cons that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any unidentified airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults altered his perspective, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had composed a document setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," explicitly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the finance chief 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 defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, repeatedly referencing information documents that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures 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 reveled in labels imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that nobody ever sees emerge from his hole? This represents a effective way to function, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the company increased from his previous salary while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
