The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant holders of that position in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were limited to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney held huge sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response 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. As Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become determined on retribution. Together with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the right thing to do then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a memo detailing situations in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a scheme to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly citing agency briefings that were whether thin or totally deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish programmes to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly leave his domain? That is a effective way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests followed him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US contracts worth billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm rose from his quarter-million dollars while military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a package worth more than $20m|twenty
