The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most influential occupants of that office in the nation's history. Whereas countless VPs had to settle for peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly called as the "actual president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and said the relationship was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a group of neo-cons that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retribution. In conjunction with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had drafted a document detailing situations in which US concerns might be endangered (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of reducing America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's face that each person had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were whether weak or completely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his lair? That is a effective way to operate, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his business interests pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth more than $20m|twenty
