The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered arguably the most powerful holders of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and said the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults altered his perspective, making him become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the right thing to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
But during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: potentially, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were either weak or completely deceptive. He backed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and establish programmes to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen leave his hole? This represents a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations pursued him during his tenure as VP. Although he had little experience in business but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
