The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While many vice-presidents were confined to marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and said the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in official appearances as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney said the strikes transformed him, making him become intent on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the proper decision to do then. I was convinced at the time and I believe it presently."
However during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, unfitness, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memo outlining situations in which US concerns might be endangered (including "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were whether weak or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? This represents a effective way to work, actually."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars while military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at over $20m|twenty
