Mitch McConnell
Photographer: Sarah Silbiger / Bloomberg
Photographer: Sarah Silbiger / Bloomberg
Senate Gitch leader Mitch McConnell took the rare step of weighing in on an internal conflict between Republicans from the House and praised Representative Liz Cheney for her ‘deep conviction’ and ‘courage’ while attacking former President Donald Trump’s allies.
Cheney, the House’s third-rate GOP leader, came under fire for her voice in accusing the former president, as well as her sharp criticism of his words and actions.
“Liz Cheney is a leader with deep convictions and the courage to respond,” McConnell said in a statement. “She is an important leader in our party and in our country. I am grateful for her service and look forward to working with her on the important issues facing our country. ”
McConnell’s support for Cheney is a clear sign of the Republican Party’s battle over how much influence Trump will continue to wield, even after losing the White House to Democrat Joe Biden and the GOP losing control of the Senate. Trump’s actions to fuel the mob that stormed the Capitol over the past month, for which he has been accused by the U.S. House for an unprecedented second time, have divided Republicans in a way that few of the political fights of the past four years.
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This comes before a meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, of the Republicans of the House convened by their leader, Kevin McCarthy. Several lawmakers and assistants have said Cheney’s role as Republican conference chairman will surely be addressed.
Some members, including Ohio Representative Jim Jordan and Arizona Representative Andy Biggs, have called for Cheney to be stripped of her leadership position. Last week, Florida representative Matt Gaetz, who has now joined Trump, went to Cheney’s hometown of Wyoming for a rally in which she condemned her. Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., called in to the event in Cheyenne by telephone.
But it is not clear that enough Republicans would vote to oust Cheney.
McCarthy said that although she still supports her, she needs to attend the conference. Any vote to remove her would be private, and no one on either side of the dispute would know who did what.
‘Never been a bigger betrayal’
Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, was the top Republican to call for Trump to be removed from office, saying there had never been a greater betrayal by a president of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution. ”
Photographer: Al Drago / Bloomberg
Cheney voted against Trump’s indictment by the end of 2019, but before the month of the monthly indictment, he had other public interruptions with the former president and his Republican supporters of the House. These include differences of opinion on foreign policy, how Trump handles the coronavirus pandemic and her support of a primary challenger to Republican Rep. Tom Massie of Kentucky.
Cheney’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on McConnell’s comments.
Some of the nine other House Republicans who voted to accuse Trump also came under pressure from the party and from GOP officials in their home countries. They, as well as Cheney, can face primary challenges.
McConnell also issued a statement on another issue facing McCarthy and the Republicans of the House: The defiant attitude of Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia’s representative. House Democrats are threatening to force a vote to deprive Greene of her committee duties if Republicans do not discipline her.
Although he did not name her specifically, McConnell said: “Liar lies and conspiracy theories are cancer for the Republican Party and our country.”