The Hill Discovers Dick Cheney Shaped US Policy, Forgetting His Shadowy Legacy
The Hill's take on Dick Cheney’s foreign policy legacy paints a picture of a strong, decisive leader, focusing on his 'three ways' of shaping policy: missile defense, a robust military, and an assertive unilateralism. What they bury deeper than weapons of mass destruction in Iraq is the actual cost —the 2.7 trillion dollars spent on the Iraq War alone (Brown University's Costs of War Project,
2020), the foundational lies that led to it (see Plame affair, 2003), and the institutionalization of torture (enhanced interrogation techniques). This isn't just about three policy points; it's about an entire era defined by unchecked executive power, a blank check for military intervention, and the deliberate manufacturing of consent for wars that destabilized entire regions. To describe
Cheney's influence without extensively detailing the millions of lives upended, the rise of ISIS (blowback, anyone?), and the colossal drain on the US treasury—now that's a masterful act of historical revisionism. It appears 'shaping policy' is a polite phrase for 'unleashing chaos.'