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How much money did Dick Cheney make from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?
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8 Answers
Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
Hard to say. He made out quite nice though.
"The first name that comes to everyone’s mind here is Halliburton. According to MSN Money, Halliburton’s KBR, Inc. division bilked government agencies to the tune of $17.2 billion in Iraq war-related revenue from 2003-2006 alone. This is estimated to comprise a whopping one-fifth of KBR’s total revenue for the 2006 fiscal year. The massive payoff is said to have financed the construction and maintenance of military bases, oil field repairs, and various infrastructure rebuilding projects across the war-torn nation. This is just the latest in a long string of military/KBR wartime partnerships, thanks in no small part to Dick Cheney’s former role with the parent company."
http://www.businesspundit.com/th...
Cheney resigned as CEO of Halliburton on July 25, 2000. As vice president, he argued that this step removed any conflict of interest. Cheney's net worth, estimated to be between $30 million and $100 million, is largely derived from his post at Halliburton, as well as the Cheneys' gross income of nearly $8.82 million.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2...
1992
Halliburton subsidiary Brown & Root is paid $9 million by the Pentagon (under Cheney's direction as Secretary of Defense) to produce a classified report detailing how private companies (like itself) could provide logistical support for American troops in potential war zones around the world. Shortly after this report, the Pentagon awards Brown & Root a five-year contract to provide logistics for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The General Accounting Office estimates that through this contract, Brown & Root makes overall $2.2 billion in revenue in the Balkans.2
http://www.halliburtonwatch.org/...
1995
Without any previous business experience, Cheney leaves the Department of Defense to become the CEO of Halliburton Co., one of the biggest oil-services companies in the world. He will be chairman of the company from 1996 to October 1998 and from February to August 2000. Under Cheney's leadership, Halliburton moves up from 73rd to 18th on the Pentagon's list of top contractors. The company garners $2.3 billion in U.S. government contracts, which almost doubles the $1.2 billion it earned from the government previously
The Past 10 Years
Halliburton shares returned 467% over the last decade. How'd they get there?
Dividends accounted for a good chunk. Without dividends, shares returned 391% over the last 10 years.
Earnings growth was substantial. Halliburton's normalized earnings per share grew at an average rate of 18% a year from 2001 until today. That's far above the market average, and easily ahead of rivals Schlumberger (NYS: SLB) and Baker Hughes (NYS: BHI) .
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011...
Halliburton "broke ties" with KBR in 2007. As of 2010, based on contracts awarded FY 2009, KBR had moved to number 6 in fiscal awards.
How about this as well: From The Guardian 3-13-03
Cheney is still paid by Pentagon contractor
Bush deputy gets up to $1m from firm with Iraq oil deal
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/...
KBR has already benefited considerably from the "war on terror". It has so far been awarded contracts worth nearly $33m to build the detention camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for al-Qaida suspects.
In the five years Mr Cheney was at the helm, Halliburton nearly doubled the amount of business it did with the government to $2.3bn. The company also more than doubled its political contributions to $1.2m, overwhelmingly to Republican candidates.
Top 20 Defence Contractors 2010 from FY 2009
http://defensesystems.com/articl...
You gotta admit, if you get off on big business - you would wanna be hangin with Dick.
"The first name that comes to everyone’s mind here is Halliburton. According to MSN Money, Halliburton’s KBR, Inc. division bilked government agencies to the tune of $17.2 billion in Iraq war-related revenue from 2003-2006 alone. This is estimated to comprise a whopping one-fifth of KBR’s total revenue for the 2006 fiscal year. The massive payoff is said to have financed the construction and maintenance of military bases, oil field repairs, and various infrastructure rebuilding projects across the war-torn nation. This is just the latest in a long string of military/KBR wartime partnerships, thanks in no small part to Dick Cheney’s former role with the parent company."
http://www.businesspundit.com/th...
Cheney resigned as CEO of Halliburton on July 25, 2000. As vice president, he argued that this step removed any conflict of interest. Cheney's net worth, estimated to be between $30 million and $100 million, is largely derived from his post at Halliburton, as well as the Cheneys' gross income of nearly $8.82 million.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2...
1992
Halliburton subsidiary Brown & Root is paid $9 million by the Pentagon (under Cheney's direction as Secretary of Defense) to produce a classified report detailing how private companies (like itself) could provide logistical support for American troops in potential war zones around the world. Shortly after this report, the Pentagon awards Brown & Root a five-year contract to provide logistics for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The General Accounting Office estimates that through this contract, Brown & Root makes overall $2.2 billion in revenue in the Balkans.2
http://www.halliburtonwatch.org/...
1995
Without any previous business experience, Cheney leaves the Department of Defense to become the CEO of Halliburton Co., one of the biggest oil-services companies in the world. He will be chairman of the company from 1996 to October 1998 and from February to August 2000. Under Cheney's leadership, Halliburton moves up from 73rd to 18th on the Pentagon's list of top contractors. The company garners $2.3 billion in U.S. government contracts, which almost doubles the $1.2 billion it earned from the government previously
The Past 10 Years
Halliburton shares returned 467% over the last decade. How'd they get there?
Dividends accounted for a good chunk. Without dividends, shares returned 391% over the last 10 years.
Earnings growth was substantial. Halliburton's normalized earnings per share grew at an average rate of 18% a year from 2001 until today. That's far above the market average, and easily ahead of rivals Schlumberger (NYS: SLB) and Baker Hughes (NYS: BHI) .
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011...
Halliburton "broke ties" with KBR in 2007. As of 2010, based on contracts awarded FY 2009, KBR had moved to number 6 in fiscal awards.
How about this as well: From The Guardian 3-13-03
Cheney is still paid by Pentagon contractor
Bush deputy gets up to $1m from firm with Iraq oil deal
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/...
KBR has already benefited considerably from the "war on terror". It has so far been awarded contracts worth nearly $33m to build the detention camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for al-Qaida suspects.
In the five years Mr Cheney was at the helm, Halliburton nearly doubled the amount of business it did with the government to $2.3bn. The company also more than doubled its political contributions to $1.2m, overwhelmingly to Republican candidates.
Top 20 Defence Contractors 2010 from FY 2009
http://defensesystems.com/articl...
You gotta admit, if you get off on big business - you would wanna be hangin with Dick.
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At whatever time somebody whose whole working vocation has been spent in people in general (i.e. government) part all of a sudden rises as a multi tycoon, or all of a sudden appears to have obtained abilities worth millions in the private segment you ought to regard that individual with a lot of incredulity. On the purported liberal side think the Clintons. On the privilege think Tommy Thompson or the Cheneys.
Cheney, as former CEO of Halliburton, did have a severance bundle which incorporated a set sum in conceded money remuneration, and more than 400,000 shares in investment opportunities. This is common practice for CEOs of real partnerships, regardless of whether they are going to be VP. When he got to be VP, Cheney was not legitimately required to disjoin his money related premiums with Halliburton (the Vice President is not subject to irreconcilable circumstance regulations). On the other hand, it'd be inappropriate behavior (and a media bad dream) to keep these immediate ties.
While Cheney didn't make anything off of Halliburton because of the control of Iraq, as Christopher blueprints Halliburton and KBR absolutely made out entirely well on account of the arrangements of the Bush Administration and Cheney's impact in vitality and guard approach. Truth be told, the entire military/guard and vitality areas made out great because of Iraq war and post-war reproduction contracts. Temporary workers Reap $138 Billion from Iraq War, Cheney's Halliburton #1 with $39.5 Billion.
The organization was given $39.5 billion in Iraq-related contracts over the previous decade, with large portions of the arrangements given with no offering from contending firms, for example, a $568-million contract recharging in 2010 to give lodging, dinners, water and washroom services to troopers, an arrangement that prompted a Justice Department claim over charged kickbacks, and around $130 billion in extra financing for the Iraq War and Afghanistan. The aggregate expenses of the Iraq War on the US economy will be three trillion dollars. For other accomplices in this, check this list for the 15 Most Vicious Iraq War Profiteers.
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Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
Anytime someone whose entire working career has been spent in the public (i.e. government) sector suddenly emerges as a multi millionaire, or suddenly seems to have acquired skills worth millions in the private sector you should regard that person with a great deal of skepticism. On the so called liberal side think the Clintons. On the right think Tommy Thompson or the Cheneys. In Cheney's case, an admitted draft-dodger who enthusiastically supported or engaged us in un-winnable wars for personal gain, you are looking not just at a war profiteer, but an actual war criminal. Ever wonder why he doesn't travel outside the US? He would be arrested in most of the world and turned over to the World Court for real justice.
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Updated 273w ago · Upvoted by Marc Bodnick, Harvard Gov major, Stanford PoliSci PhD student · Author has 1.3k answers and 3.5m answer views
Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
Not a dime. Not a penny.
He was Chairman and CEO of Halliburton before he became Vice President. The company wanted to keep him in case he wasn't elected, so he didn't receive his severance package until after the election, but before taking office. In addition to the severance, he received a great deal of money due to deferred compensation and stock options. However, he gave away all of that income to a charity call Capital Partners for Education. (h/t to Chris Richardson for looking that up.) Remarkably, he single-handedly provides about 10% or so as much as the federal government itself does to help kids who otherwise couldn't afford to go to private schools attend schools like the one where President Obama sends his children. He even paid for an insurance policy that means that the charity will receive income if Halliburton were to go out of business and stop the flow of payments to him.
Of course, just because this enormous amount of money is going to an indisputably good cause, there is no reason for the left to let go of their unshakable fantasy that when Cheney (and the larger Republican establishment) does something good, it must be evil.
Daily Kos: The charitable Dick Cheney - what does his dollar buy?
He was Chairman and CEO of Halliburton before he became Vice President. The company wanted to keep him in case he wasn't elected, so he didn't receive his severance package until after the election, but before taking office. In addition to the severance, he received a great deal of money due to deferred compensation and stock options. However, he gave away all of that income to a charity call Capital Partners for Education. (h/t to Chris Richardson for looking that up.) Remarkably, he single-handedly provides about 10% or so as much as the federal government itself does to help kids who otherwise couldn't afford to go to private schools attend schools like the one where President Obama sends his children. He even paid for an insurance policy that means that the charity will receive income if Halliburton were to go out of business and stop the flow of payments to him.
Of course, just because this enormous amount of money is going to an indisputably good cause, there is no reason for the left to let go of their unshakable fantasy that when Cheney (and the larger Republican establishment) does something good, it must be evil.
Daily Kos: The charitable Dick Cheney - what does his dollar buy?
Well, he got a $34 million dollar exit from Halliburton in 2001.
Chris Matthews says Cheney got $34 million payday from Halliburton
That is not directly a profit from the Iraq War, but I can't help but think that it influenced the choice of Halliburton as go-to contractor for the Iraq War, for which the company earned $39 billion dollars.
FOCUS | Cheney's Halliburton Made $39.5 Billion on Iraq War
The only military services contract Halliburton had completed prior to this was the $1 billion dollar Bosnia-Kosovo war contract so it's not like they were the only option for what was a no-bid contract. And Cheney was actually at the Halliburton helm when the company acquired Dresser Industries, an asbestos-lawsuit-ridden-mess of a company that cost Halliburton $2.8 billion dollars in settlement payouts, so it's not like he did such a great job when he was in charge.
Dick Cheney's Halliburton: a corporate case study | Pratap Chatterjee
He continued to receive deferred salary payments and held unexercised stock options in Halliburton while Vice President and during the Iraq war. He sold most of the remaining shares in 2005 for $7 million dollars. He donated those proceeds to charity. However, that charity was the Richard B Cheney Cardiac Institute at George Washington University, and given his heart problems, it's quite likely that he would personally benefit from any scientific advances that came out of that funding.
Chris Matthews says Cheney got $34 million payday from Halliburton
That is not directly a profit from the Iraq War, but I can't help but think that it influenced the choice of Halliburton as go-to contractor for the Iraq War, for which the company earned $39 billion dollars.
FOCUS | Cheney's Halliburton Made $39.5 Billion on Iraq War
The only military services contract Halliburton had completed prior to this was the $1 billion dollar Bosnia-Kosovo war contract so it's not like they were the only option for what was a no-bid contract. And Cheney was actually at the Halliburton helm when the company acquired Dresser Industries, an asbestos-lawsuit-ridden-mess of a company that cost Halliburton $2.8 billion dollars in settlement payouts, so it's not like he did such a great job when he was in charge.
Dick Cheney's Halliburton: a corporate case study | Pratap Chatterjee
He continued to receive deferred salary payments and held unexercised stock options in Halliburton while Vice President and during the Iraq war. He sold most of the remaining shares in 2005 for $7 million dollars. He donated those proceeds to charity. However, that charity was the Richard B Cheney Cardiac Institute at George Washington University, and given his heart problems, it's quite likely that he would personally benefit from any scientific advances that came out of that funding.
Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
We're in an era where financial and political transactions are far too sophisticated and subtle for us to pull out the "War Profiteering" label and have it stick.
Let's call it what it is: Crony Capitalism
________
I agree with the facts of Gary Teal's response, if not the analysis.
Cheney, as former CEO of Halliburton, did have a severance package which included a set amount in deferred cash compensation, as will as over 400,000 shares in stock options. This is common practice for CEOs of major corporations, whether or not they are about to be vice president.
When he became vice president, Cheney was not legally required to sever his financial interests with Halliburton (the Vice President is not subject to conflict of interest regulations). However, it'd be bad form (and a media nightmare) to keep these direct ties.
In an attempt to avoid the appearance of a conflict, Cheney signed a legal agreement stating that all post-tax benefits received from exercising the stock options would be donated to charity. (In addition to the 20% going to Capital Partners for Education, as mentioned by Gary; 40% would go to George Washington University's medical faculty and 40% to the University of Wyoming). It also said that he would not take a tax deduction for these charitable contributions.
While it's possible that altruism was one of the motivating factors behind purchasing insurance guaranteeing the charity would receive the income, regardless of whether Halliburton was solvent -- More likely the primarily motivating factor was in closing any perceived loopholes in the "conflict of interest" case: no matter what events happened later (or what events Cheney might cause to happen later), X amount of money was guaranteed to go to Y causes.**
In short, this was very carefully crafted to ensure that "not a penny" went directly from Halliburton into Cheney's pockets.
______
I also agree with the facts of Christopher Rodreguez's response, if not the analysis.
While Cheney didn't make anything off of Halliburton due to the occupation of Iraq, as Christopher outlines Halliburton and KBR certainly made out quite well thanks to the policies of the Bush Administration and Cheney's influence in energy and defense policy.
In fact, the whole military/defense and energy sectors made out quite well due to Iraq war and post-war reconstruction contracts.
Anyone who is an executive in, who is heavily invested in, or who is otherwise affiliated with the private/political revolving door in the defense sector personally profited. This includes Cheney -- as well as members of Cheney's family, his business associates, executives at Halliburton, their families, their business associates ... and so on and so on. This isn't "evil" -- it's "just business and politics."
As is usually the case, the exact amount of profit depends on the level of wealth invested, and the contacts available to leverage for ... political donations, new business contracts, board seats, etc.
______
I have no love for Cheney. But trying to connect the dots from Cheney ... Direct Cash Profit is a no-go.
Plenty of people, with varying levels of direct and indirect political influence, profited from the wars: Republicans, Democrats, lobbyists, contractors, corporate fat cats. It's not a simple sound-byte super-villain scenario. Cheney is the easiest-to-spot target -- but he's playing by the rules of a much bigger game that started long before he entered the scene.
It's a layer of corruption deeply embedded within our government, that allows (and expects) wealthy corporate-connected folks look out for the interests and profits of their wealthy corporate-connected friends (and donors).
_______
** It is worth noting that the independent Congressional Research Service stated that receiving deferred compensation and holding stock options constitutes a "financial interest", regardless.
Let's call it what it is: Crony Capitalism
________
I agree with the facts of Gary Teal's response, if not the analysis.
Cheney, as former CEO of Halliburton, did have a severance package which included a set amount in deferred cash compensation, as will as over 400,000 shares in stock options. This is common practice for CEOs of major corporations, whether or not they are about to be vice president.
When he became vice president, Cheney was not legally required to sever his financial interests with Halliburton (the Vice President is not subject to conflict of interest regulations). However, it'd be bad form (and a media nightmare) to keep these direct ties.
In an attempt to avoid the appearance of a conflict, Cheney signed a legal agreement stating that all post-tax benefits received from exercising the stock options would be donated to charity. (In addition to the 20% going to Capital Partners for Education, as mentioned by Gary; 40% would go to George Washington University's medical faculty and 40% to the University of Wyoming). It also said that he would not take a tax deduction for these charitable contributions.
While it's possible that altruism was one of the motivating factors behind purchasing insurance guaranteeing the charity would receive the income, regardless of whether Halliburton was solvent -- More likely the primarily motivating factor was in closing any perceived loopholes in the "conflict of interest" case: no matter what events happened later (or what events Cheney might cause to happen later), X amount of money was guaranteed to go to Y causes.**
In short, this was very carefully crafted to ensure that "not a penny" went directly from Halliburton into Cheney's pockets.
______
I also agree with the facts of Christopher Rodreguez's response, if not the analysis.
While Cheney didn't make anything off of Halliburton due to the occupation of Iraq, as Christopher outlines Halliburton and KBR certainly made out quite well thanks to the policies of the Bush Administration and Cheney's influence in energy and defense policy.
In fact, the whole military/defense and energy sectors made out quite well due to Iraq war and post-war reconstruction contracts.
Anyone who is an executive in, who is heavily invested in, or who is otherwise affiliated with the private/political revolving door in the defense sector personally profited. This includes Cheney -- as well as members of Cheney's family, his business associates, executives at Halliburton, their families, their business associates ... and so on and so on. This isn't "evil" -- it's "just business and politics."
As is usually the case, the exact amount of profit depends on the level of wealth invested, and the contacts available to leverage for ... political donations, new business contracts, board seats, etc.
______
I have no love for Cheney. But trying to connect the dots from Cheney ... Direct Cash Profit is a no-go.
Plenty of people, with varying levels of direct and indirect political influence, profited from the wars: Republicans, Democrats, lobbyists, contractors, corporate fat cats. It's not a simple sound-byte super-villain scenario. Cheney is the easiest-to-spot target -- but he's playing by the rules of a much bigger game that started long before he entered the scene.
It's a layer of corruption deeply embedded within our government, that allows (and expects) wealthy corporate-connected folks look out for the interests and profits of their wealthy corporate-connected friends (and donors).
_______
** It is worth noting that the independent Congressional Research Service stated that receiving deferred compensation and holding stock options constitutes a "financial interest", regardless.
Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
Cheney's profit came before he was "Vice." As CEO of Haliburton, he was paid a lot of money and his wealth was considerable. Haliburton's subsequent no-bid business is seen by many as a quid pro quo. Payback is not always a Mo-Fo.
Originally Answered: How much did Dick Cheney personally profit from the occupation of Iraq?
He was not worth $90M when he went into the white house
Dick Cheney Net Worth
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Dick Cheney Net Worth
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