The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. While numerous VPs had to settle for minor or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, consistently calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention 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 meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, leading him to become focused on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it then and I hold that view presently."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had composed a memorandum setting out scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (including "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's face that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind striking Iraq, repeatedly citing agency briefings that were both weak or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the torture, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to apprehend the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in labels assigned to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his lair? That is a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the firm grew from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
