Ex- Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: A Look Back on the Powerful Government Service

The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who has died at age 84, was regarded as one of the most influential holders of that position in US history. While countless VPs were confined to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney wielded huge influence during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was commonly described as the "real president".

Bush objected to that description and claimed the connection was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always addressing him in official appearances as President, while he called him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their relationship 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 governmental choices.

A Post-9/11 Era

At the head of a faction of conservative hawks that included military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he pushed hard for the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. Whereas Bush made his way to a secret bunker in Nebraska, Cheney took command, directing the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes nearing the government building.

Cheney said the assaults changed him, leading him to become focused on retribution. Along with other neo-cons, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, although there was little proof of Saddam Hussein being involved.

Debated Actions

He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of individuals apprehended after 9/11. He informed CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was predicated on faulty information repeated by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It proved to be the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced then and I believe it presently."

But during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the botched execution of Iraq. One of the White House's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he wrote later "clear negligence, carelessness, and unaccountability: potentially, falsehoods, incompetence, and corruption."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not completely to blame for the Iraq military action. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for comparable steps. He had written a document outlining circumstances in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "access to essential resources, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be postured to operate alone when collective action cannot be arranged," specifically referencing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush too had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on carrying out what his father had notably declined to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the president, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's involvement in the regional tensions and suggested military action against Iraq.

Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He also disliked that one of the biggest hotels in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his predecessor's visage that all visitors had to tread upon.

Questioning Techniques

But it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous advocating attacking Iraq, frequently citing agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or completely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush administration indirectly described as "advanced techniques", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.

Answering a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the torture, Cheney rejected the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We asked [the CIA] to take steps and establish programmes to catch the individuals who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it was not repeated. That is precisely what they did and they earn a lot of credit."

Public Image

Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the Star Wars villain and The Prince of Darkness, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the sinister strategist in the background that nobody ever sees leave his lair? This represents a advantageous way to function, truthfully."

Business Interests

Dispute over his commercial relationships followed him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in defence, particularly in Saudi Arabia, he was asked to become part of Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and chief executive.

In 2000 he became Bush's election partner for the presidency. Debatably, during the conflict in Iraq, Halliburton was awarded US agreements worth multiple billions.

It made him rich. His annual income during his tenure at the company increased from his $258,394 during his time as defence secretary to over four million. When he departed in 2000 he had a compensation package totaling over $20m|twenty