The deceased US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as among the most influential incumbents of the vice-presidency in American history. While numerous vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or symbolic positions, Cheney exercised enormous power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently called as the "actual president".
Bush resented this portrayal and claimed the connection was more complicated. He pointed out that Cheney was respectful, always addressing him in public as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney viewed the relaxed president malleable on a broad range of administrative determinations.
The Post-9/11 Era
In charge of a contingent of neo-conservatives that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been attending a meeting at a school in Florida. While Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took command, ordering the downing of any unresponsive planes approaching the government building.
Cheney claimed the attacks changed him, making him become focused on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, such as Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to apprehend Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, even though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Controversial Policies
He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, or about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was founded on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I believe it today."
Yet even at the time, there were opposing views at a high level about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the position. "I witnessed, as a baseline," he later wrote "clear negligence, inaction, and unaccountability: potentially, lying, ineptitude, and graft."
Broader Context
Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq campaign. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for similar measures. He had drafted a memorandum outlining situations in which US concerns might be threatened (encompassing "access to crucial commodities, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "the US should be postured to operate alone when joint efforts prove impossible," explicitly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had entered the Oval Office generally inclined on executing what his parent had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Following he had been sacked by the president, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a scheme to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the largest hotels in Baghdad had a surface artwork with a portrait of his father's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was among the most vehement advocating invading Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were both insubstantial or entirely misleading. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the use of waterboarding and harsh treatment.
Responding to a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to apprehend the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of recognition."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by detractors such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is reported as stating: "Do I represent the malevolent mastermind in the background that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? This represents a effective way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as VP. While he had little experience in business but strong connections in security, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum companies, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was awarded US deals worth multiple billions.
It significantly boosted his finances. His annual income during his tenure at the company grew from his quarter-million dollars during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he left in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
