The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was seen as among the most powerful holders of that position in the nation's history. While many vice-presidents were limited to peripheral or symbolic roles, Cheney wielded substantial sway during the term of George W Bush, to the point that he was often called as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and stated the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, invariably addressing him in public as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush disputed even characterisations of their partnership as a collaboration because it implied that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a contingent of conservative hawks that featured Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. When of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, commanding the downing of any non-communicating planes nearing the government building.
Cheney stated the strikes altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a takeover of Afghanistan in an endeavor to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the invasion of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Debated Actions
He voiced no apologies about the invasion, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis died, and not about the harsh treatment of suspects captured after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on faulty reports repeated by Cheney, was the correct decision. "It proved to be the right thing to do back then. I was convinced back then and I hold that view today."
Yet even then, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "clear negligence, inaction, and recklessness: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and dishonesty."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq invasion. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had written a document detailing scenarios in which national priorities might be compromised (encompassing "availability of vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be positioned to act independently when collective action prove impossible," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House vaguely intent on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. After he had been sacked by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his objective of reducing America's involvement in the Middle East dispute and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the largest accommodations in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.
Interrogation Methods
But it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous supporting striking Iraq, repeatedly referencing information documents that were whether insubstantial or completely deceptive. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had been obtained through the torture, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to apprehend the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
External Perception
Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the idea that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication 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 background that remains unseen come out of his hole? That is a effective way to function, in fact."
Corporate Connections
Dispute over his business interests followed him through his period as vice-president. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was awarded US agreements valued at substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his period at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars when he was military head to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement worth in excess of $20m|twenty
