The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as arguably the most significant holders of that position in US history. Whereas many second-in-commands were confined to minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney held enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".
Bush objected to that description and said the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public settings as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of policy decisions.
A Post-9/11 Era
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the shooting down of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, leading him to become focused on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the right thing to do then. I was convinced back then and I maintain that stance presently."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had drafted a memo outlining situations in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "availability of essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had arrived in the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a plot to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken advocating attacking Iraq, consistently quoting information documents that were both thin or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures 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 is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the journalist's 2013 volume about the two, 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 corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? That is a nice way to function, in fact."
Business Interests
Controversy over his corporate affiliations accompanied him during his tenure as vice-president. While he had little experience in business but established relationships in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling multiple billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his time at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars while military head to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
