The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While countless vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge sway during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty information circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do then. I had faith back then and I hold that view presently."
But during that period, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, inaction, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a memo setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the Oval Office generally inclined on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed 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 proposed armed intervention 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 trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's countenance that everyone had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen leave his lair? That is a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the company increased from his previous salary when he was military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
