The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered among the most powerful holders of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although numerous vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "actual president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and said the dynamic was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees captured 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 correct path to take. "It represented the right thing to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance now."
But even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a document detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," specifically mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to apprehend the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in nicknames imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling 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: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? It's a effective way to function, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars while defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty
