The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Although many vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and claimed the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes transformed him, causing him to be intent on retribution. Along with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do back then. I had faith at the time and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and unaccountability: at worst, falsehoods, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum setting out circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "access to essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's countenance that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were whether weak or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the background that remains unseen come out of his domain? That is a advantageous way to function, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. While he had little experience in business but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts totaling substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
