One of the most dissatisfying elements of Donald Trump’s rise to power is the fact that the ghouls who paved the way for him are suddenly being treated as reasonable when they complain about the mess they made. And now, Dick Cheney has now joined the ranks of this less-than-illustrious group.
A video from 2022 in which former Vice President Cheney described Trump as a “threat to our republic” has recently resurfaced as the election draws ever closer. The Twitter/X user @RpsAgainstTrump posted the 26 second long clip, which shows an aged Cheney sporting a white hat and discussing why Trump would be a terrible choice.
A screenshot of the post was uploaded to the subreddit r/WhitePeopleTwitter, where the self-proclaimed front page of the internet reacted pretty much exactly as you would expect. The top comment as of this article being published implores Cheney to take Trump “quail hunting,” a reference to the controversial moment when the former politician accidentally shot a Texas lawyer while both were hunting back in 2006.
Others were a little more clear with their disdain for Cheney, pointing out that he was far from good for America himself. He was given some choice nicknames in the thread, but one common theme was referring to him as Satan.
There was some optimism that this intervention resurfacing might move the needle favorably towards a Biden win in November, but many users were despondent, certain that Cheney would simply be decried as a RINO (Republican in Name Only) by Trump supporters.
While this is sad, it’s also probably true. MAGA fans have shown time and time again that they will do anything for Trump, even if it is the opposite of what they claimed they wanted to do the day prior. With that said, part of the reason this extreme and cultish thinking has found such a safe home in the American Right is thanks to Cheney and his ilk, who laid the groundwork for a Trump presidency in countless ways.
Cheney’s political career first began under Nixon, which sums up everything you need to know about him. During his long tenure in various Republican administrations, he showed many proclivities for authoritarian thought, including suggesting using the U.S. Justice Department to silence a journalist. Highlights from his House of Representatives career include voting against the creation of the U.S. Department of Education, and trying to ensure President Reagan’s veto against imposing sanctions against apartheid South Africa wasn’t overridden.
As a key part of the Bush Jr. administration, Cheney was also the beneficiary of the Supreme Court’s 2000 decision to award the younger Bush the election, which many consider to be a key turning point in the court’s respectability. It has also clearly emboldened Trump’s “stop the steal” efforts.
During his tenure, Cheney also utilized political spin and friendly outlets like FOX to push a regressive agenda. This paved the way for Trump’s “fake news” tagline, as well as the favorable coverage the former Apprentice star continues to receive despite being a convicted felon, a potential child rapist, and his increasing cognitive decline.
While that all makes for grim reading, there’s no doubt Cheney’s nadir came in a post 9/11 America. He was a key driver behind totalitarian-like legislation including the PATRIOT Act, and pushed for making “enhanced interrogation techniques” (torture) legal under U.S. policy.
He also famously was one of the key decision makers when it came to sending troops into Iraq in 2003, shaping the failed “War on Terror” in a way that few others did. This included his numerous unfounded statements about Iraq having “weapons of mass destruction,” and alleging links between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda despite there being little to no evidence of them. Additionally, he potentially made millions off the disasterous war, with government contracts going to business he had deep ties to (notably Halliburton).
Other ways Cheney shaped the MAGA-infested Republican party included telling his staff to leak classified information from the CIA as it was beneficial to his aims, and refusing to release documents he was legally bound to.
And, to top it all off, Cheney only released the video criticizing Trump because his daughter, Liz, was in the MAGA cross hairs at the time. So, we have corruption, the pulling apart of America’s democratic fabric, and naked self-interest: tell me again, which one is which?
Published: Jul 9, 2024 01:58 pm