The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most significant incumbents of that position in American history. While countless second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and claimed the connection was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was courteous, always referring to him in public settings as the President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their association as a team because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the relaxed president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
A Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a session at a school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the downing of any unidentified planes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Decisions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the correct action to do then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance today."
However even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I observed, as a baseline," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, lying, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had composed a document setting out situations in which US concerns might be endangered (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be postured to operate alone when collective action prove impossible," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that all visitors had to walk over.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, frequently referencing intelligence reports that were either insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had resulted from the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and put in place programmes to catch the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in monikers given to him by opponents such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? That is a advantageous way to operate, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in business but good contacts in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the White House. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals worth substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly earnings during his period at the company rose from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
