The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most influential incumbents of that office in the nation's history. While numerous vice-presidents were confined to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and claimed the dynamic was more complex. He noted that Cheney was respectful, always referring to him in public settings as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a team because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the government building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, making him become determined on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It represented the right thing to do then. I was convinced then and I believe it presently."
However even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a memo setting out circumstances in which American interests might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of lowering America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's face that each person had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or completely misleading. He backed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly leave his lair? That is a effective way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in business but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the firm increased from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at over $20m|twenty
