Former Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on His Impactful Time in Office

The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most significant incumbents of that office in US history. Although numerous vice-presidents were confined to peripheral or figurehead functions, Cheney held enormous influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was commonly referred to as the "true president".

Bush resented this portrayal and said the connection was more complicated. He observed that Cheney was deferential, consistently addressing him in public settings as President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush disputed even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were equals. Despite such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.

The Period Following the Attacks

In charge of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed military head Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he vigorously promoted the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 strike, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, commanding the downing of any unidentified airplanes approaching the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the attacks transformed him, making him become focused on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an effort to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.

Controversial Actions

He voiced no apologies about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis perished, and not about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on inaccurate reports circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It proved to be the proper decision to do at that time. I was convinced then and I maintain that stance today."

Yet even then, there were opposing views at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the White House's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the post. "I saw, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not completely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memorandum setting out scenarios in which US concerns might be threatened (featuring "availability of vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be positioned to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush additionally had entered the White House generally inclined on implementing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been sacked by the president, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his intention of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed armed intervention against Iraq.

Bush carried a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been responsible for a scheme to murder his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally resented that one of the most prominent establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's countenance that everyone had to step on.

Interrogation Methods

But it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement supporting striking Iraq, consistently citing information documents that were whether weak or entirely deceptive. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and torture.

Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that determined that no useful information had come from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "loaded with crap". He informed Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to implement measures and put in place initiatives to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it was not repeated. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of credit."

Public Persona

Cheney enjoyed monikers assigned to him by detractors such as the dark character and the dark figure, and by the idea that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his lair? That is a nice way to work, in fact."

Business Interests

Dispute over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as vice-president. While he had little experience in commerce but good contacts in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial petroleum companies, in 1995 as leader and top executive.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's running mate for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US deals worth substantial sums.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the corporation increased from his previous salary during his time as Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth over $20m|twenty