The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential occupants of that position in the nation's history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were confined to minor or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their partnership as a team because it implied that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any unresponsive planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become focused on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It represented the right thing to do then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
However even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "clear negligence, negligence, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had composed a document detailing situations in which US concerns might be threatened (encompassing "access to 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 orchestrated," explicitly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's countenance that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were either thin or entirely deceptive. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his lair? This represents a advantageous way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in business but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals worth multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
