The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While many VPs were limited to minor or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised substantial influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in official appearances as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer 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. As Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any unresponsive airplanes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be determined on retribution. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Actions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum detailing situations in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his parent's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous supporting attacking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were either insubstantial or entirely misleading. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to capture the individuals 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 took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the evil genius in the shadows that remains unseen leave his domain? This represents a effective way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in business but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars when he was defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
