The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential occupants of the vice-presidency in American history. While many vice-presidents were limited to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and said the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in public settings as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the shooting down of any unresponsive aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, making him become focused on retribution. Along with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, nor about the waterboarding of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I had faith then and I hold that view presently."
However during that period, 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 dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had composed a memo outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (encompassing "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the White House generally inclined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's face that each person had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement advocating attacking Iraq, consistently referencing intelligence reports that were either thin or totally inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to capture the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his lair? It's a nice way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations accompanied him throughout his time as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but good contacts in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US deals worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the company increased from his $258,394 during his time as military head to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth over $20m|twenty
