Ex- Second-in-Command Dick Cheney: An Examination on the Influential Political Career

The late US vice-president Dick Cheney, who died at age 84, was considered one of the most significant holders of the vice-presidency in American history. Although countless second-in-commands had to settle for marginal or figurehead functions, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the administration of George W Bush, so much so that he was frequently described as the "real president".

Bush resented that description and stated the relationship was more complex. He noted that Cheney was courteous, invariably addressing him in public as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush challenged even portrayals of their association as a partnership because it implied that they were on equal footing. In spite of these denials, Cheney found the easygoing president pliable on a wide array of governmental choices.

The Post-9/11 Era

Leading of a group of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the military intervention of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington. During of the 9/11 attack, Bush had been taking part in a gathering at a educational institution in Florida. While Bush headed for a secure location in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, directing the destruction of any unidentified aircraft nearing the US Capitol.

Cheney claimed the strikes transformed him, causing him to be intent on revenge. In conjunction with other neo-cons, like Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he campaigned for a occupation of Afghanistan in an attempt to seize Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the armed intervention of Iraq, although there was no evidence of Saddam Hussein having involvement.

Disputed Policies

He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis lost their lives, and not about the enhanced interrogation of suspects rounded up after 9/11. He stated to CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion, which was based on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It represented the correct action to do at that time. I had faith at the time and I hold that view today."

But during that period, there were opposing views at a top tier about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own representatives to the area, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was dismissed from the role. "I witnessed, at the very least," he wrote later "true dereliction, negligence, and unaccountability: in the worst case, deception, ineptitude, and graft."

Wider Perspective

Cheney was not entirely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had pushed for similar measures. He had written a document outlining scenarios in which US concerns might be endangered (including "obtaining essential resources, mostly Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the United States should be postured to act independently when collective action cannot be arranged," particularly mentioning armed actions against Iraq.

Bush also had assumed the presidency vaguely intent on executing what his predecessor had notably declined to do in 1991; overthrow Saddam. After he had been dismissed by the administration, the Treasury head Paul O'Neill disclosed how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had declared his intention of diminishing America's participation in the Middle East dispute and mooted defense operations against Iraq.

Bush carried a individual resentment against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his parent, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He also objected to that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a image of his parent's countenance that each person had to tread upon.

Investigation Approaches

Yet it was Cheney who was one of the most vehement behind striking Iraq, frequently referencing agency briefings that were whether insubstantial or totally inaccurate. He endorsed what the Bush administration politely called as "enhanced interrogation", the use of simulated drowning and physical pressure.

Answering a Senate report in 2014 that concluded that no valuable data had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney dismissed the conclusions as "riddled with crap". He told Fox News: "We requested [the CIA] to take steps and create initiatives to capture the bastards who killed 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That is precisely what they did and they merit a lot of recognition."

External Perception

Cheney took pleasure in nicknames imposed on him by critics such as the dark character and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a sinister influence directing Bush. In Peter Baker'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 corner that operates invisibly leave his domain? That is a effective way to operate, in fact."

Commercial Ties

Controversy over his business interests followed him during his tenure as VP. Even though he had minimal expertise in corporate affairs but strong connections in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's largest energy companies, in 1995 as chairman and chief executive.

In 2000 he was selected as Bush's election partner for the executive branch. Controversially, during the military campaign, Halliburton was granted US contracts worth multiple billions.

It made him rich. His yearly earnings during his tenure at the firm rose from his $258,394 during his time as military head to $4.4m. When he departed in 2000 he had a severance arrangement totaling over $20m|twenty