The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as one of the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were limited to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and said the dynamic was more complex. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably addressing him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any non-communicating planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney said the attacks altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Controversial Policies
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It represented the right thing to do then. I had faith back then and I hold that view today."
However even then, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his father's face that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating attacking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were either weak or totally deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and establish procedures to apprehend the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating 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 background that remains unseen leave his hole? That is a advantageous way to function, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as vice-president. Even though he had little experience in business but established relationships in security, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements worth multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm increased from his $258,394 when he was defence secretary to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
