The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful incumbents of that position in US history. Whereas many vice-presidents were confined to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly called as the "true president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was deferential, consistently calling him in official appearances as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their relationship as a team because it suggested that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a contingent of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty information circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I maintain that stance now."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had composed a memorandum outlining scenarios in which national priorities might be endangered (including "obtaining essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement advocating attacking Iraq, consistently citing agency briefings that were both insubstantial or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? This represents a effective way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Although he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
