The former US VP Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential holders of that position in American history. Whereas numerous second-in-commands were confined to marginal or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded huge sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and claimed the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently addressing him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a faction of neo-cons that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any non-communicating planes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, causing him to be determined on retribution. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate reports repeated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I believed it back then and I hold that view presently."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had composed a document detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (featuring "access to essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's face that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were whether thin or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and establish procedures to apprehend the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? This represents a nice way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts valued at billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the company grew from his $258,394 while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty