The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as among the most significant occupants of that office in American history. While many second-in-commands were limited to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and said the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a team because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive planes nearing the government building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be focused on retaliation. In conjunction with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view presently."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had composed a memorandum setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," explicitly citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were both insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the findings as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen emerge from his hole? This represents a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in business but strong connections in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while military head to $4.4m. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
