The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential incumbents of that office in American history. Whereas numerous VPs were limited to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and said the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently calling him in official appearances as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a team because it suggested that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney considered the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, making him become determined on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had drafted a memorandum setting out circumstances in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the Oval Office vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in monikers assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the sinister strategist in the shadows that nobody ever sees leave his lair? This represents a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, particularly 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 chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
