The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was regarded as among the most significant incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. Whereas many VPs were confined to marginal or ceremonial roles, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to this portrayal and claimed the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably referring to him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their relationship as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. Despite these denials, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a whole raft of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a faction of neo-cons that included defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been participating in a session at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive aircraft heading toward the US Capitol.
Cheney said the strikes changed him, leading him to become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Decisions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the waterboarding of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the correct course of action. "It represented the correct action to do then. I was convinced at the time and I believe it presently."
But during that period, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I saw, as a baseline," he later wrote "obvious failure, negligence, and unaccountability: potentially, deception, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not solely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for such action. He had drafted a memorandum setting out scenarios in which national priorities might be endangered (featuring "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to act independently when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his father had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his plan of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his parent's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were either weak or entirely inaccurate. He backed what the Bush administration indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Addressing a Senate document in 2014 that found that no useful information had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and establish initiatives to apprehend the perpetrators who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by opponents such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the evil genius in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his domain? That is a effective way to work, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as VP. While he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but good contacts in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the presidency. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the company increased from his quarter-million dollars while defence secretary to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling more than $20m|twenty
