One-time Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: A Retrospective on the Influential Political Career

The late US second-in-command Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most powerful incumbents of that office in American history. Whereas numerous vice-presidents were confined to marginal or ceremonial positions, Cheney held substantial influence during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "actual president".

Bush objected to this portrayal and said the connection was more complex. He noted that Cheney was deferential, invariably calling him in public as the President, while he addressed him as Dick. Bush questioned even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it indicated that they were on equal footing. Regardless of these objections, Cheney considered the laidback president malleable on a wide array of governmental choices.

The Aftermath of 9/11

At the head of a group of conservative hawks that encompassed defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense 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 assault, Bush had been taking part in a meeting at a school in Florida. As Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, ordering the downing of any unresponsive planes approaching the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the strikes changed him, leading him to become determined on revenge. Along with other neo-conservatives, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a invasion of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then vigorously pushed for the military action of Iraq, though there was little proof of Saddam Hussein playing a role.

Controversial Policies

He expressed no regrets about the armed intervention, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the harsh treatment of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was founded on misleading information echoed by Cheney, was the right course of action. "It proved to be the right thing to do at that time. I was convinced back then and I hold that view now."

Yet during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the poor management of Iraq. One of the government's own delegates to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the role. "I saw, at a minimum," he subsequently stated "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, falsehoods, unfitness, and dishonesty."

Wider Perspective

Cheney was not entirely to blame for the Iraq campaign. Prior to 9/11, Wolfowitz had advocated for comparable steps. He had composed a memo outlining situations in which US concerns might be endangered (encompassing "availability of essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "America should be postured to act independently when joint efforts prove impossible," explicitly citing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush additionally had assumed the Oval Office somewhat determined on implementing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the White House, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggested military action against Iraq.

Bush bore a private grievance against Saddam, thinking he had been responsible for a scheme to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a trip to Kuwait in 1993. He additionally objected to that one of the biggest establishments in Baghdad had a ground design with a likeness of his parent's face that everyone had to tread upon.

Questioning Techniques

But it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement advocating striking Iraq, frequently quoting intelligence reports that were whether thin or entirely misleading. He endorsed what the Bush White House indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of waterboarding and torture.

Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the harsh techniques, Cheney disregarded the report as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and put in place initiatives to capture the perpetrators who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That was specifically what they did and they deserve a lot of praise."

Public Image

Cheney took pleasure in nicknames given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness, and by the idea that he was a dark force controlling Bush. In the author's 2013 volume about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is quoted as saying: "Am I the sinister strategist in the shadows that remains unseen come out of his lair? It's a effective way to operate, truthfully."

Business Interests

Controversy over his corporate affiliations pursued him throughout his time as VP. Even though he had limited background in business but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was offered a position at Halliburton, one of the world's biggest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as leader and CEO.

In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's election partner for the presidency. Contentiously, during the military campaign, Halliburton was given US contracts valued at billions.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly earnings during his time at the firm grew from his $258,394 while military head to over four million. When he resigned in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling in excess of $20m|twenty