The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most powerful occupants of that position in US history. While many second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating planes nearing the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I had faith at the time and I hold that view now."
But during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, falsehoods, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which American interests might be endangered (featuring "access to essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on carrying out what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief 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 military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a scheme to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's countenance that each person had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating attacking Iraq, consistently quoting agency briefings that were both weak or entirely misleading. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish procedures to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the sinister strategist in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? That is a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as VP. Even though he had limited background in commerce but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his tenure at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
