The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was considered among the most powerful occupants of that position in American history. Although numerous second-in-commands were confined to minor or symbolic positions, Cheney held huge influence during the term of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and stated the connection was more complicated. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in public as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were equals. In spite of such protestations, Cheney found the relaxed president pliable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney said the assaults transformed him, making him become determined on retaliation. Along 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 strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Policies
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an approximated 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 military action, which was founded on misleading reports circulated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It represented the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view now."
Yet even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and recklessness: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a memo setting out scenarios in which American interests might be compromised (including "access to vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when joint efforts cannot be arranged," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency generally inclined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been sacked by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of diminishing America's participation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his parent's countenance that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was among the most outspoken supporting striking Iraq, consistently referencing information documents that were either thin or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush government indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to implement measures and establish programmes to catch the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by detractors such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea 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: "Is it me who is the evil genius in the shadows that operates invisibly leave his domain? That is a nice way to work, actually."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as VP. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but good contacts in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US deals totaling substantial sums.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while Pentagon chief to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
