The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was considered one of the most influential holders of that position in American history. While countless second-in-commands were confined to marginal or symbolic roles, Cheney exercised enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "actual president".
Bush objected to that description and claimed the dynamic was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was courteous, always calling him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney considered the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.
The Period Following the Attacks
Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in response to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any non-communicating aircraft heading toward the Capitol building.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, causing him to be intent on retaliation. In conjunction with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the invasion of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.
Controversial Actions
He showed no remorse about the military campaign, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of detainees apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was predicated on faulty intelligence echoed by Cheney, was the proper course of action. "It proved to be the correct action to do back then. I had faith then and I maintain that stance now."
However during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the position. "I saw, at a minimum," he later wrote "true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility: at worst, falsehoods, ineptitude, and graft."
Additional Factors
Cheney was not completely accountable for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a document setting out scenarios in which American interests might be threatened (featuring "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had contended that "the US should be prepared to take unilateral action when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly citing armed actions against Iraq.
Bush additionally had arrived in the White House vaguely intent on implementing what his parent had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had stated his intention of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush bore a personal grudge against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a visit to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a image of his parent's visage that all visitors had to step on.
Interrogation Methods
However it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating striking Iraq, frequently citing information documents that were either weak or totally deceptive. He supported what the Bush White House indirectly described as "enhanced interrogation", the application of simulated drowning and harsh treatment.
Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had been obtained through the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the findings as "full of crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and create programmes to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and guarantee it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."
Public Persona
Cheney reveled in nicknames assigned to him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In the author's 2013 book about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Do I represent the sinister strategist in the corner that operates invisibly leave his lair? This represents a nice way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Debate over his business interests followed him through his period as second-in-command. Even though he had minimal expertise in commerce but strong connections in defence, especially in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum corporations, in 1995 as chairman and top executive.
In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the presidency. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling billions.
It greatly increased his wealth. His annual income during his time at the firm increased from his $258,394 when he was military head to millions. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package worth in excess of $20m|twenty
