The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at age 84, was regarded as among the most powerful incumbents of that office in the nation's history. While countless VPs were confined to marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney exercised substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "real president".
Bush resented this portrayal and said the relationship was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, consistently calling him in official appearances as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it suggested that they were peers. Regardless of these objections, Cheney found the relaxed president accommodating on a broad range of governmental choices.
The Aftermath of 9/11
At the head of a contingent of neo-cons that featured defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been taking part in a session at a educational institution in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes changed him, making him become intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Actions
He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the waterboarding of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on misleading information repeated by Cheney, was the right decision. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance presently."
But even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, unfitness, and corruption."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq military action. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had drafted a memo detailing situations in which American interests might be endangered (encompassing "obtaining crucial commodities, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be postured to act independently when joint efforts cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning military moves against Iraq.
Bush too had entered the presidency generally inclined on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of diminishing America's participation in the regional tensions and proposed defense operations against Iraq.
Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, believing he had been behind a conspiracy to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a portrait of his parent's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, frequently quoting information documents that were both weak or completely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of interrogation method and physical pressure.
Responding to a Senate document in 2014 that found that no valuable data had come from the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and put in place procedures to catch the individuals who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed monikers imposed on him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In the journalist'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 malevolent mastermind in the background that operates invisibly come out of his domain? It's a effective way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him through his period as second-in-command. Even though he had little experience in business but established relationships in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest energy corporations, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the White House. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US contracts valued at billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his period at the corporation rose from his $258,394 while defence secretary to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a package valued at more than $20m|twenty
