The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most significant holders of that position in US history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were confined to marginal or ceremonial functions, Cheney held huge influence during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was respectful, invariably referring to him in official appearances as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were peers. Despite such protestations, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
At the head of a faction of neo-conservatives that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unidentified planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the assaults altered his perspective, leading him to become determined on revenge. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on faulty information circulated by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the right thing to do back then. I believed it at the time and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even then, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he wrote later "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: at worst, lying, unfitness, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for similar measures. He had written a document setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (including "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," particularly mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House generally inclined on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a conspiracy to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's countenance that each person had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken behind attacking Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were either thin or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House politely called as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the torture, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to apprehend the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames assigned to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence 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: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? It's a effective way to operate, in fact."
Business Interests
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had limited background in business but established relationships in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US contracts totaling billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation increased from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at over $20m|twenty
