The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as arguably the most influential holders of that office in the nation's history. Whereas many second-in-commands were confined to peripheral or symbolic functions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "real president".
Bush resented that description and said the dynamic was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was courteous, invariably calling him in official appearances as Mr President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. In spite of these objections, Cheney found the easygoing president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a group of conservative hawks that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion 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 attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unidentified aircraft nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the strikes transformed him, making him become focused on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the harsh treatment of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I was convinced at the time and I hold that view presently."
However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I saw, at the very least," he wrote later "obvious failure, inaction, and irresponsibility: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had composed a memorandum setting out situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be positioned to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," specifically referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had entered the White House generally inclined on executing what his parent had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his objective of reducing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested defense operations against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a plot to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his parent's visage that everyone had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were both insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and physical pressure.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create initiatives to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in labels assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the concept that he was a shadow power controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the evil genius in the background that operates invisibly leave his domain? This represents a advantageous way to operate, actually."
Commercial Ties
Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him during his tenure as vice-president. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the White House. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US deals valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His annual income during his period at the corporation increased from his $258,394 during his time as Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package totaling in excess of $20m|twenty
