The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most significant holders of that office in American history. Although many second-in-commands were limited to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney held enormous influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public settings as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney considered the easygoing president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the destruction of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, causing him to be focused on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate reports echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I believed it back then and I maintain that stance today."
But even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a memo setting out situations in which national priorities might be compromised (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of lowering America's involvement in the regional tensions and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a scheme to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken advocating striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting intelligence reports that were either weak or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to catch the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? That is a effective way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships accompanied him through his period as vice-president. While he had little experience in commerce but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling multiple billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm increased from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
