Ex- Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on His Impactful Political Career

The former US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was considered arguably the most significant incumbents of that position in American history. While numerous VPs were confined to minor or ceremonial functions, Cheney held enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to such an extent that he was frequently referred to as the "real president".

Bush resented that description and claimed the relationship was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was respectful, consistently addressing him in official appearances as Mr President, while he called him as Dick. Bush questioned even characterisations of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Despite these objections, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a wide array of governmental choices.

The Period Following the Attacks

At the head of a group of neo-conservatives that encompassed Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been participating in a meeting at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush made his way to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney took charge, directing the downing of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, leading him to become determined on retaliation. Along with other conservative figures, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, though there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Controversial Decisions

He showed no remorse about the armed intervention, in which an estimated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals rounded up after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was founded on misleading intelligence repeated by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It was the correct action to do at that time. I believed it at the time and I maintain that stance today."

But during that period, there were dissenting voices at a top tier about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he subsequently stated "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: at worst, falsehoods, unfitness, and corruption."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq military action. Before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for such action. He had written a document setting out situations in which national priorities might be compromised (featuring "access to vital raw materials, mainly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be positioned to operate alone when collective action cannot be orchestrated," specifically citing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill revealed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his plan of lowering America's participation in the regional tensions and suggested defense operations against Iraq.

Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been behind a conspiracy to kill his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore resented 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.

Questioning Techniques

However it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating attacking Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were either insubstantial or entirely inaccurate. He supported what the Bush government politely called as "intensive questioning", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.

Responding to a Senate analysis in 2014 that determined that no useful information had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the findings as "riddled with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and create programmes to capture the perpetrators who murdered 3,000 of us on 9/11 and ensure it would not recur. That was specifically what they did and they earn a lot of praise."

Public Image

Cheney enjoyed nicknames given to him by critics such as the dark character and The Prince of Darkness, and by the concept that he was a sinister influence manipulating Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the background that remains unseen leave his lair? This represents a nice way to operate, actually."

Corporate Connections

Controversy over his commercial relationships pursued him during his tenure as second-in-command. While he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest oil and gas conglomerates, in 1995 as chair and top executive.

In 2000 he became Bush's running mate for the White House. Debatably, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US contracts totaling multiple billions.

It made him rich. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the firm increased from his previous salary while military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a package worth in excess of $20m|twenty