The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most powerful occupants of that office in American history. Although many vice-presidents were limited to minor or figurehead roles, Cheney held substantial power during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was often described as the "true president".
Bush objected to such a characterisation and claimed the relationship was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was respectful, invariably calling him in public as Mr President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their partnership as a team because it indicated that they were equals. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president malleable on a broad range of policy decisions.
A Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of conservative hawks that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary 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 assault, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush headed for a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, ordering the shooting down of any unidentified planes approaching the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the assaults changed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Debated Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the invasion, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, nor about the waterboarding of detainees rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate information circulated by Cheney, was the proper decision. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I had faith then and I believe it today."
Yet during that period, there were contrary opinions at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I witnessed, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and dishonesty."
Broader Context
Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had drafted a document detailing scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (including "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the United States should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," specifically mentioning defense operations against Iraq.
Bush too had assumed the White House somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of lowering America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a plot to kill his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore objected to that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his predecessor's visage that each person had to tread upon.
Investigation Approaches
But it was Cheney who was one of the most outspoken advocating invading Iraq, frequently quoting agency briefings that were whether thin or completely deceptive. He endorsed what the Bush government euphemistically referred to as "advanced techniques", the employment of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate document in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He informed Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to establish protocols and put in place programmes to apprehend the bastards who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Persona
Cheney enjoyed labels given to him by opponents such as the Star Wars villain and the dark figure, and by the concept that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? That is a advantageous way to work, truthfully."
Commercial Ties
Debate over his commercial relationships followed him throughout his time as second-in-command. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but good contacts in security, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as leader and top executive.
In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was granted US agreements totaling substantial sums.
It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation increased from his quarter-million dollars while Pentagon chief to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a compensation package worth more than $20m|twenty
