The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most influential occupants of that office in US history. While many vice-presidents were limited to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was deferential, consistently calling him in public settings as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it suggested that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of policy decisions.
The Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the destruction of any unidentified airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults altered his perspective, making him become intent on retribution. Together with other neo-cons, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on misleading reports repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the right thing to do back then. I believed it at the time and I maintain that stance now."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a document outlining scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be prepared to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically referencing military moves against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted defense operations against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his father's countenance that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, repeatedly quoting agency briefings that were both thin or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and establish initiatives to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames assigned to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his hole? It's a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US contracts worth billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty
