The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most powerful incumbents of that office in US history. Whereas countless vice-presidents were confined to minor or ceremonial positions, Cheney exercised enormous power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was often called as the "actual president".
Bush resented that description and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in official appearances as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these denials, Cheney considered the easygoing president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a session at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating planes approaching the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I hold that view presently."
However during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum outlining situations in which American interests might be compromised (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office generally inclined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, 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 lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his father's countenance that everyone had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
But it was Cheney who was among the most vehement supporting striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were whether insubstantial or totally misleading. He supported what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no useful information had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place procedures to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of praise."
External Perception
Cheney reveled in labels given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force directing Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees leave his lair? This represents a nice way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him throughout his time as VP. Although he had limited background in business but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
