The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant occupants of that office in American history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly called as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in public settings as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a collaboration because it implied that they were equals. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a faction of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, causing him to be intent on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Actions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the right thing to do back then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance now."
But even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum setting out situations in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office generally inclined on executing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his predecessor's face that each person had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, frequently referencing information documents that were either insubstantial or completely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a shadow power 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: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that remains unseen leave his domain? That is a advantageous way to function, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his commercial relationships accompanied him through his period as VP. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but established relationships in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the corporation rose from his previous salary when he was military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at more than $20m|twenty
