The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. While numerous second-in-commands were limited to minor or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded substantial influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president malleable on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion 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 meeting at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the shooting down of any unidentified planes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Policies
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on faulty intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it back then and I believe it today."
Yet even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: at worst, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be positioned to operate alone when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's face that all visitors had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were either weak or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his lair? It's a effective way to function, in fact."
Business Interests
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as VP. While he had limited background in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals totaling substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the company grew from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
