The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential incumbents of that office in American history. Whereas numerous second-in-commands were limited to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in public settings as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a group of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any unidentified planes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, causing him to be focused on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I believe it today."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he wrote later "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, deception, ineptitude, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had drafted a memo outlining situations in which US concerns might be threatened (encompassing "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be postured to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's participation in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his parent's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting agency briefings that were whether thin or totally deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of waterboarding and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels assigned to him by detractors such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his domain? This represents a nice way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts worth billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his period at the company rose from his previous salary when he was military head to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
