The former US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most significant holders of the vice-presidency in American history. While countless vice-presidents were confined to minor or ceremonial positions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently called as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was respectful, always referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the assaults altered his perspective, making him become determined on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the right thing to do then. I believed it at the time and I hold that view today."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a document setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "access to crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor 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 plan of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were whether weak or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush White House politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to catch the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by opponents 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 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen come out of his hole? That is a advantageous way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as VP. While he had little experience in business but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the firm grew from his previous salary when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
