The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as one of the most powerful incumbents of that position in US history. Although numerous second-in-commands were confined to marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney held substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often called as the "true president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and stated the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the easygoing president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, making him become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I had faith then and I believe it today."
But even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had composed a document setting out circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (including "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to operate alone when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," explicitly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House vaguely intent on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After 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 plan of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's visage that everyone had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, frequently citing intelligence reports that were whether weak or totally deceptive. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and create programmes to apprehend the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen leave his domain? This represents a effective way to work, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as second-in-command. While he had little experience in business but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
