The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was seen as one of the most significant incumbents of that office in the nation's history. Although many second-in-commands had to settle for peripheral or ceremonial positions, Cheney held huge power during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and said the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their relationship as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president pliable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The 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 pushed hard for the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a session at a elementary school in Florida. While Bush traveled to a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the downing of any unresponsive planes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, making him become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the invasion of Iraq, though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.
Disputed Actions
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the right thing to do then. I had faith at the time and I maintain that stance presently."
However during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I observed, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, negligence, and unaccountability: at worst, deception, ineptitude, and graft."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had written a memo setting out situations in which American interests might be compromised (including "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be prepared to act independently when cooperative measures cannot be arranged," explicitly citing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's involvement in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been behind a scheme to kill his father, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also resented that one of the most prominent hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a image of his father's face that all visitors had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was part of the most vehement supporting invading Iraq, consistently referencing agency briefings that were both insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate analysis in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had come from the torture, Cheney dismissed the report as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to catch the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."
Public Image
Cheney reveled in labels imposed on him by detractors such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the journalist's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Do I represent the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole? It's a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his commercial relationships pursued him through his period as VP. Although he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in military, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial oil and gas corporations, in 1995 as leader and CEO.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was given US deals totaling billions.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his time at the company grew from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
