The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential incumbents of that position in US history. Whereas numerous second-in-commands were confined to minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney held huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly described as the "true president".
Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably referring to him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a wide array of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the destruction of any unidentified planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become determined on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It was the correct action to do then. I had faith at the time and I believe it today."
However even then, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: at worst, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be compromised (including "access to vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's countenance that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were either insubstantial or completely deceptive. He backed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the employment of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create programmes to apprehend the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels assigned to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly come out of his hole? This represents a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him through his period as second-in-command. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US contracts valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his period at the firm rose from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package valued at over $20m|twenty
