The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of that office in US history. While numerous second-in-commands were limited to minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and stated the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a team because it suggested that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a contingent of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unidentified planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be focused on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I believed it back then and I believe it presently."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, lying, unfitness, and graft."
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 threatened (encompassing "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House vaguely intent on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of lowering America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his father's visage that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, consistently quoting intelligence reports that were either thin or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers given to him by opponents such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the background that operates invisibly come out of his lair? This represents a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had little experience in business but established relationships in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his time at the company rose from his $258,394 while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth more than $20m|twenty
