The former US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful holders of that office in American history. Whereas many vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded substantial power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the relationship was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the shooting down of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the attacks transformed him, making him become focused on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I hold that view today."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "clear negligence, carelessness, and unaccountability: at worst, lying, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a memo detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," explicitly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's visage that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were whether thin or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and establish procedures to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by detractors such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? That is a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had little experience in business but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the firm increased from his previous salary while Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
