The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most powerful occupants of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although many vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded enormous power during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly called as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
In charge of a faction of neo-cons that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a session at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating planes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on faulty reports circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It proved to be the proper decision to do then. I was convinced then and I believe it presently."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, carelessness, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum outlining scenarios in which national priorities might be endangered (including "access to essential resources, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the White House vaguely intent on carrying out what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a plot to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's face that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were either insubstantial or totally misleading. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in labels given to him by detractors such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the journalist'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 evil genius in the background that operates invisibly leave his lair? It's a advantageous way to function, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as VP. While he had limited background in business but good contacts in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his period at the firm grew from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
