The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as among the most significant occupants of that office in US history. Although numerous second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded substantial power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently referring to him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these objections, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the downing of any unidentified aircraft heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on retaliation. Along with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the enhanced interrogation of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on inaccurate intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It was the right thing to do back then. I believed it at the time and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, deception, incompetence, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "access to crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically citing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office vaguely intent on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. After he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a plot to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were either weak or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish procedures to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed labels imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force directing Bush. In Peter Baker'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 remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a nice way to operate, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as VP. Although he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections 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 leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the firm rose from his previous salary during his time as military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
