The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in American history. Although many VPs had to settle for minor or symbolic roles, Cheney held huge power during the administration of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly referred to as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public settings as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney claimed the assaults transformed him, causing him to be determined on revenge. Together with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the enhanced interrogation of detainees captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate information repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It represented the correct action to do then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance now."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a memorandum outlining circumstances in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "availability of crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his parent's visage that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, repeatedly citing information documents that were both thin or totally misleading. He endorsed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the torture, Cheney rejected the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and create programmes to capture the bastards who took the lives of 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 credit."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his hole? That is a advantageous way to function, in fact."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him through his period as vice-president. Even though he had limited background in commerce but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US agreements valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the firm rose from his previous salary while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
