The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most significant incumbents of that position in US history. Although countless second-in-commands were limited to marginal or symbolic functions, Cheney held enormous sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently referring to him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention 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 elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the downing of any unidentified airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, making him become determined on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading information echoed by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the correct action to do back then. I had faith back then and I believe it today."
However even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the mishandling 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 subsequently stated "obvious failure, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had drafted a document outlining scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (including "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's countenance that all visitors had to walk over.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly referencing agency briefings that were whether weak or entirely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his lair? That is a effective way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests followed him during his tenure as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in business but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his period at the firm grew from his previous salary while defence secretary to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at more than $20m|twenty
