The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most significant occupants of the vice-presidency in US history. Whereas countless vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or ceremonial positions, Cheney held substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked that description and said the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their association as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the downing of any non-communicating planes heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the assaults changed him, making him become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Policies
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the waterboarding of suspects captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on faulty reports echoed by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It was the right thing to do then. I believed it at the time and I believe it now."
Yet even at the time, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I observed, at the very least," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and recklessness: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memo detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," explicitly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the presidency somewhat determined on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his parent's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating attacking Iraq, repeatedly citing intelligence reports that were either thin or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the torture, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place procedures to capture the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in monikers imposed on him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force 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: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? This represents a nice way to function, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his commercial relationships pursued him throughout his time as VP. While he had little experience in business but good contacts in military, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US deals valued at substantial sums.
It greatly increased his wealth. His yearly compensation during his period at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty
