The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential incumbents of that position in American history. While numerous second-in-commands had to settle for minor or ceremonial roles, Cheney held huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was commonly called as the "real president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the dynamic was more nuanced. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a whole raft of administrative determinations.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush traveled to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes approaching the government building.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Policies
He voiced no apologies about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the enhanced interrogation of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance presently."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a senior level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, at the very least," he wrote later "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, unfitness, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not solely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memorandum outlining circumstances in which national priorities might be threatened (featuring "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be prepared to take unilateral action when cooperative measures prove impossible," explicitly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the regional tensions and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was part of the most outspoken behind invading Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were both thin or entirely misleading. He backed what the Bush administration politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create procedures to capture the individuals who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that remains unseen leave his hole? That is a nice way to work, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had little experience in business but good contacts in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth multiple billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his time at the firm increased from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
