The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as among the most significant holders of that office in the nation's history. Although numerous VPs were limited to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was often referred to as the "actual president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the relationship was more nuanced. He observed that Cheney was respectful, consistently referring to him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their partnership as a team because it implied that they were peers. In spite of such protestations, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a wide array of administrative determinations.
A Aftermath of 9/11
Leading of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command 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 attack, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the shooting down of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks transformed him, making him become intent on retribution. In conjunction with other conservative figures, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Debated Policies
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of suspects apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on misleading information circulated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the proper decision to do back then. I had faith at the time and I maintain that stance today."
But even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had composed a memorandum detailing scenarios in which American interests might be threatened (including "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to operate alone when collective action prove impossible," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had assumed the Oval Office vaguely intent on executing what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of diminishing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been behind a scheme to murder his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a portrait of his parent's visage that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting striking Iraq, consistently citing intelligence reports that were whether insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the employment of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the report as "riddled with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and establish initiatives to capture the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by opponents such as Darth Vader and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the corner that operates invisibly leave his hole? It's a advantageous way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests accompanied him throughout his time as vice-president. Although he had limited background in business but established relationships in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm grew from his $258,394 during his time as military head to millions. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth over $20m|twenty
