The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most influential occupants of that office in American history. Although numerous VPs were limited to marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney held huge influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often called as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their partnership as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. Despite these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a session at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance now."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a memorandum setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (including "availability of crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the Oval Office generally inclined on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been sacked by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of diminishing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his predecessor's face that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were both insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a nice way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader 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 awarded US agreements valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the company increased from his previous salary during his time as military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
