The War Huckstering Rhino
Former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney made the news by endorsing Kamal Harris for President. Usually, no one cares about what Cheney has to say or what he believes. The only reason the story made the headlines was Cheney, who still considers himself a Republican, defected and is now supporting the Democratic machine. If there is one thing that is as certain as death and taxes, a Democrat who remains in the party will never endorse a Republican, even for the lowest office of dog catcher.
Cheney’s endorsement has put him on good paper with the left, even though they mercilessly criticized him while he was in office. But for those who agree with MAGA, Dick Cheney is nothing more than a has-been, and his current position on political leadership is the dying gasp of the Rhino elitist class.
Cheney, a multimillionaire and the former CEO of Halliburton was the driving force to continue Bush’s conflict in Iraq. He knew and kept silent about the vast evidence proving there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq but kept touting the lie. He gave life to the narrative and persuaded Congress to vote to send our troops to be butchered, thus fulfilling his ideology that America should democratize the world with America’s premiere military.
To say Cheney is a warmonger is an underestimation. While in office, he didn’t care about the casualties our men and women suffered. Furthermore, he probably didn’t miss a night’s sleep thinking about how many Iraqi civilians were slaughtered during the campaign. It is no secret that Cheney does not like Donald Trump or the Maga party because they have taken over the Republican Party with the moral position of no more wars. This must infuriate Cheney, and his ire manifests itself with siding with the Party now holding the mantle of war—The Democratic Party.
Moral Americans are sick of wars. Post World War II, the military engagements of the United States have produced nothing but carnage. The Korean War didn’t stop Communism, neither did the Vietnam campaign. The Middle East conflict deposed leaders, but the tensions remain. Iran is stronger than ever, and terrorism has not ceased to exist, as evidenced by the Hamas attacks on Israel. All we have to show for seventy-five years of wars across the world is young soldiers killed in their primes with scores of others mentally and physically mangled, not to mention all of the civilian casualties.
For the elitists like Cheney, that all doesn’t seem to matter. The massive killings in the world are nothing more than collateral damage to them. He has never paid the price as he comfortably lives in his plush Jackson Hole, Wyoming estate. Far less affluent and connected citizens and their families are the ones who carry the burden.
This is why the MAGA party has such an appeal: no more wars and the useless spilling of blood. MAGA is a repudiation of the Cheney Rhino/Democratic foreign policy, and this goes against Cheney’s grain that he is willing to throw away all of his previous principles of liberty to ensure the killing continues and, perhaps all the while, his bank continues to grow.
Cheney isn’t the only Rhino to support the military complex. Another former Vice President, Michael Pence, Niki Haley, and twenty-two Republican Senators voted to continue funding the war in Ukraine instead of pushing the Biden Administration to seek peace. These are the last of the war-mongering Rhinos, which, thankfully, are being dismantled and displaced by the MAGA doctrine.
People had forgotten that Dick Cheney got a second chance of life in 2012 when he received a donor’s heart and was transplanted to him. One might think with a gift such as this, Cheney would spend his time visiting Veteran Administration Hospitals and apologizing for the harm his ideology caused or spending his time doing some good. But that’s not the case. Instead, he used his time to promote more wars by supporting Kamala Harris, who vowed in her acceptance speech to continue the policy of sending troops into harm’s way.