The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered one of the most significant incumbents of that position in the nation's history. Although numerous vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or figurehead positions, Cheney held huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were peers. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any unresponsive aircraft nearing the government building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, leading him to become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I had faith back then and I maintain that stance now."
But even then, there were dissenting voices at a senior level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, lying, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had written a memorandum outlining situations in which US concerns might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be postured to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency generally inclined on implementing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of reducing America's engagement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's visage that everyone had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting invading Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were both insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had come from the torture, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the background that remains unseen emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as VP. Although he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but established relationships in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the company increased from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
