The deceased US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most powerful incumbents of that position in American history. While numerous second-in-commands were confined to marginal or symbolic roles, Cheney held substantial sway during the administration of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in public as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even characterisations of their relationship as a team because it suggested that they were equals. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the relaxed president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th 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. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the destruction of any unidentified airplanes heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney stated the attacks changed him, making him become intent on retribution. Along with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the waterboarding of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."
However even then, there were contrary opinions at a senior level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the government's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he wrote later "obvious failure, carelessness, and recklessness: potentially, falsehoods, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memo detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be threatened (encompassing "obtaining vital raw materials, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be postured to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the presidency somewhat determined on executing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the initial gathering of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of reducing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and suggested armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, believing he had been responsible for a scheme to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally disliked that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his father's visage that each person had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, repeatedly referencing information documents that were either insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and torture.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to catch the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they merit a lot of credit."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed nicknames assigned to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the pair, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the shadows that operates invisibly emerge from his lair? It's a effective way to function, truthfully."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had little experience in commerce but strong connections in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's VP candidate for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling billions.
It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his time at the corporation increased from his $258,394 when he was military head to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a package totaling more than $20m|twenty
