The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Although numerous second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked that description and stated the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their relationship as a team because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the right thing to do back then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance presently."
But even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memo outlining scenarios in which American interests might be endangered (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a plot to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, repeatedly citing agency briefings that were whether thin or totally deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish programmes to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his domain? That is a effective way to operate, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him during his tenure as VP. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
