The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential holders of the vice-presidency in the nation's history. Although many vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or figurehead roles, Cheney held huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush disliked such a characterisation and stated the dynamic was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently referring to him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their relationship as a collaboration because it suggested that they were peers. In spite of these objections, Cheney considered the easygoing president accommodating on a broad range of policy decisions.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a faction of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of suspects captured 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 proper decision. "It was the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view today."
Yet even at the time, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had composed a memorandum detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be compromised (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "America should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had arrived in the White House vaguely intent on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush held a personal grudge against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Investigation Approaches
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous advocating attacking Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were either weak or entirely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "enhanced interrogation", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the report as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place initiatives to capture the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a shadow power manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the pair, 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 emerge from his domain? This represents a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Dispute over his business interests followed him during his tenure as VP. Although he had limited background in commerce but strong connections in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals totaling multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the company rose from his quarter-million dollars while Pentagon chief to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling over $20m|twenty
