The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as among the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While numerous second-in-commands were limited to marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised enormous power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, consistently referring to him in public settings as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a group of conservative hawks that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the shooting down of any non-communicating aircraft approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults transformed him, making him become focused on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I believed it then and I believe it today."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "obvious failure, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, lying, incompetence, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a document setting out circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to act independently when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that everyone had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney dismissed the findings as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? That is a nice way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in business but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the firm increased from his $258,394 while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at more than $20m|twenty
