The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was seen as one of the most powerful incumbents of that office in American history. While numerous VPs were confined to minor or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush objected to that description and stated the connection was more complex. He observed that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a collaboration because it implied that they were on equal footing. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a session at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the shooting down of any unresponsive planes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Disputed Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the correct action to do back then. I believed it then and I maintain that stance now."
But even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the position. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had drafted a document detailing scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (including "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been involved in a plot to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's countenance that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, consistently quoting information documents that were either insubstantial or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that found that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his domain? This represents a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Dispute over his business interests followed him through his period as VP. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US agreements worth billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package valued at more than $20m|twenty
