The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered arguably the most significant incumbents of that office in the nation's history. While many second-in-commands had to settle for marginal or ceremonial positions, Cheney exercised substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and stated the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become intent on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on misleading reports echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
But even then, there were opposing views at a top tier 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 saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document outlining scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (including "obtaining essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to act independently when collective action prove impossible," explicitly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been dismissed 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 announced his plan of diminishing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind invading Iraq, consistently citing information documents that were either insubstantial or totally deceptive. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by detractors such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that remains unseen emerge from his hole? This represents a effective way to function, actually."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his period at the corporation grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as Pentagon chief to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
