The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as one of the most significant incumbents of the vice-presidency in US history. Although many VPs were limited to minor or symbolic functions, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly called as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. In spite of these objections, Cheney found the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, causing him to be focused on revenge. Together with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate reports repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith then and I maintain that stance today."
But during that period, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the presidency vaguely intent on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his parent's visage that everyone had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly referencing agency briefings that were both weak or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in monikers assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? It's a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in business but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals valued at multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his period at the company grew from his previous salary during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
