The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most influential incumbents of that position in US history. Although numerous VPs were limited to minor or figurehead functions, Cheney held substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush objected to that description and said the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were equals. In spite of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any unidentified aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance today."
Yet during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and recklessness: at worst, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had written a document detailing circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "access to crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," explicitly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency generally inclined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a conspiracy to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were both thin or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place programmes to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames assigned to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the shadows that nobody ever sees leave his lair? That is a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as vice-president. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm grew from his $258,394 while defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty