The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as among the most powerful incumbents of that office in the nation's history. While numerous second-in-commands were confined to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney held substantial sway during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a team because it implied that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the relaxed president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive planes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty reports repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a document setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (including "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office generally inclined on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's face that everyone had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating invading Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were both weak or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? This represents a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had minimal expertise in business but established relationships in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the corporation increased from his previous salary during his time as military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
