The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered one of the most significant holders of the vice-presidency in US history. Although numerous vice-presidents were confined to marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney held enormous sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always calling him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any non-communicating planes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the right thing to do then. I believed it at the time and I maintain that stance today."
Yet even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior 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 witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, negligence, and recklessness: at worst, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had composed a memo outlining circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," explicitly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his father, 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 portrait of his parent's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken advocating attacking Iraq, consistently quoting information documents that were both thin or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that concluded 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 programmes to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by opponents such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume 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 remains unseen emerge from his domain? This represents a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests pursued him through his period as vice-president. Although he had little experience in business but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
