The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered one of the most powerful incumbents of that office in the nation's history. Whereas numerous VPs were limited to minor or figurehead positions, Cheney wielded huge power during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented such a characterisation and said the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public settings as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Policies
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty information echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do back then. I had faith at the time and I believe it today."
However during that period, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I observed, as a baseline," he wrote later "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had composed a memo outlining scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (featuring "availability of essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," explicitly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency vaguely intent on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of reducing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his predecessor's face that each person had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were both thin or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by critics such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Am I the sinister strategist in the corner that remains unseen leave his lair? That is a advantageous way to work, in fact."
Business Interests
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him through his period as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in business but good contacts in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US contracts totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the firm grew from his $258,394 when he was military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth more than $20m|twenty
