The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as arguably the most powerful occupants of that position in the nation's history. Although many vice-presidents had to settle for marginal or symbolic positions, Cheney held huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush disliked that description and claimed the relationship was more complex. He observed that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their relationship as a team because it implied that they were peers. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any unidentified airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, leading him to become intent on retaliation. Together with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, or about the enhanced interrogation of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was based on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the right thing to do at that time. I believed it back then and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were dissenting voices at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, lying, ineptitude, and dishonesty."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had written a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be endangered (encompassing "access to crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when cooperative measures cannot be orchestrated," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the most prominent accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's countenance that everyone had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, repeatedly citing information documents that were either insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He backed what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the employment of simulated drowning and torture.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels assigned to him by critics such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees leave his domain? It's a effective way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Controversy over his business interests accompanied him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had minimal expertise in commerce but good contacts in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the presidency. Controversially, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his time at the company rose from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
