The late US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as among the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. While numerous VPs were limited to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the relationship was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes transformed him, leading him to become determined on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I believed it then and I hold that view now."
But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had drafted a document setting out circumstances in which American interests might be threatened (including "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed 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 plan of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his parent's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were whether weak or completely misleading. He supported what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to capture the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney took pleasure in labels imposed on him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that remains unseen leave his hole? It's a nice way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests pursued him through his period as VP. While he had minimal expertise in business but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US agreements worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
