The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered one of the most powerful incumbents of that position in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and said the relationship was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a team because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, making him become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: at worst, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had composed a document detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the presidency generally inclined on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's face that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were both thin or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create programmes to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to work, actually."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm increased from his quarter-million dollars while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
