Ex- Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: An Examination on His Influential Time in Office

The late US VP Dick Cheney, who passed away at the age of 84, was regarded as one of the most significant incumbents of that office in American history. Whereas many second-in-commands had to settle for minor or symbolic positions, Cheney wielded substantial power during the term of George W Bush, so much so that he was often described as the "actual president".

Bush objected to this portrayal and stated the relationship was more complex. He pointed out that Cheney was deferential, always referring to him in official appearances as the President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush questioned even descriptions of their relationship as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. Regardless of such protestations, Cheney found the laidback president pliable on a broad range of governmental choices.

A Post-9/11 Era

In charge of a faction of neo-cons that featured military head Donald Rumsfeld and assistant defense secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in reaction to the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been attending a gathering at a school in Florida. While Bush headed for a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any non-communicating airplanes heading toward the government building.

Cheney said the strikes altered his perspective, leading him to become focused on revenge. Together with other neo-conservatives, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he advocated for a occupation of Afghanistan in an endeavor to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then pressed fiercely for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Disputed Decisions

He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an approximated 100,000 Iraqis perished, nor about the harsh treatment of individuals captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq military action, which was predicated on faulty intelligence circulated by Cheney, was the correct path to take. "It represented the proper decision to do back then. I believed it at the time and I hold that view today."

However during that period, there were contrary opinions at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own delegates to the region, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not reappointed from the role. "I saw, as a baseline," he later wrote "true dereliction, carelessness, and unaccountability: in the worst case, lying, unfitness, and corruption."

Additional Factors

Cheney was not entirely responsible for the Iraq invasion. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for such action. He had drafted a memorandum detailing circumstances in which US concerns might be threatened (including "access to vital raw materials, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had argued that "America should be prepared to operate alone when cooperative measures prove impossible," particularly referencing armed actions against Iraq.

Bush also had entered the Oval Office somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had famously refused to do in 1991; remove Saddam. Subsequent to he had been fired by the administration, the treasury secretary Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the opening session of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his objective of diminishing America's engagement in the Middle East dispute and mooted armed intervention against Iraq.

Bush held a individual resentment against Saddam, thinking he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his father, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the biggest accommodations in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's countenance that everyone had to walk over.

Investigation Approaches

Yet it was Cheney who was among the most vociferous behind attacking Iraq, repeatedly citing information documents that were either weak or entirely inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush White House euphemistically referred to as "intensive questioning", the application of interrogation method and harsh treatment.

Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no valuable data had been obtained through the harsh techniques, Cheney dismissed the findings as "loaded with crap". He stated to Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to establish protocols and create initiatives to catch the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."

External Perception

Cheney enjoyed monikers given to him by critics such as Darth Vader and the dark figure, and by the notion that he was a dark force manipulating Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 book about the two, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Am I the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees leave his domain? It's a effective way to work, in fact."

Business Interests

Dispute over his corporate affiliations followed him through his period as VP. Although he had little experience in corporate affairs but established relationships in military, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest petroleum conglomerates, in 1995 as chairman and CEO.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the presidency. Controversially, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was granted US agreements worth multiple billions.

It significantly boosted his finances. His yearly compensation during his tenure at the corporation grew from his $258,394 while military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement valued at over $20m|twenty