The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as among the most powerful incumbents of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although countless vice-presidents had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney wielded huge power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly described as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, consistently referring to him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their association as a collaboration because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-cons that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the attacks changed him, making him become intent on retribution. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do then. I had faith back then and I hold that view presently."
Yet during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I observed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memo detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be orchestrated," particularly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the Oval Office vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a likeness of his parent's face that each person had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement supporting attacking Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were whether weak or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the employment of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in labels assigned to him by detractors such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly come out of his hole? That is a advantageous way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his commercial relationships followed him during his tenure as vice-president. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the company rose from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
