The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as among the most powerful holders of that position in American history. While many second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney exercised substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and said the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their relationship as a team because it implied that they were equals. Despite these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive planes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on retribution. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Actions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view today."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had composed a memorandum outlining circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (including "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be positioned to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," explicitly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the application of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers assigned to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? It's a nice way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had minimal expertise in business but good contacts in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the company grew from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
