The former US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most powerful holders of that office in US history. Although countless vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney held huge sway during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly called as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a team because it suggested that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any unidentified planes nearing the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks transformed him, causing him to be intent on retribution. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the waterboarding of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
But even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a plot to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting invading Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were whether weak or completely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators 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 recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that remains unseen leave his domain? That is a nice way to operate, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as VP. While he had limited background in business but strong connections in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his tenure at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while military head to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at more than $20m|twenty
