Wyoming GOP Stops Recognizing Liz Cheney as Republican Due to Opposing Political Views

January 6 Committee Votes On Whether To Hold Steve Bannon In Contempt

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WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 19: U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), vice chair of the select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol, speaks during a committee business meeting at Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill October 19, 2021 in Washington, DC. The committee voted to hold former Trump adviser Stephen Bannon in criminal contempt for refusing to cooperate with the committee’s subpoena.

Rep. Liz Cheney is facing criticism and actions from the Wyoming Republican Party that voted on Saturday to stop recognizing the state representative as a member of the GOP due to opposing political views.

The vote of the state party central committee ended in 31-29, followed by similar results from Republican officials that are located in about one-third of the state's 23 counties. In a statement, a Cheney spokesman, Jeremy Adler, said that there was nothing you could call the Wyoming representative other than a committed conservative Republican.

Wyoming'S Liz Cheney

Adler said it was quite unfortunate that a small portion of the Wyoming GOP leadership members have allowed themselves to abandon that fundamental principle. He argued that they instead let themselves become hostage to the lies of a dangerous and irrational man.

This is the second time that the Wyoming Republican Party has criticized and moved against Cheney, the first coming after the latter's vote to impeach former United States President Donald Trump. The Wyoming representative then voted in support of the action due to the Republican businessman's role in the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot, The Hill reported.

The Wyoming GOP central committee voted in February to censure Cheney after her vote to impeach former President Trump. On the other hand, Cheney defended her vote by saying that it was an act of conscience in defense of the country's Constitution. The official argued that the Republican businessman incited the large crowd of supporters to storm the capitol and lit the flames of the unprecedented event. Adler added that Cheney was bound by her oath to the Constitution.

Cheney is expected to face off against at least four Republican challengers in the 2022 primary including Harriet Hageman, an attorney from Cheyenne, who has Trump's endorsement. In a statement, Hageman considered the Wyoming GOP central committee's decision as "fitting."

Support Against Trump

In her address, Hageman said that Cheney stopped recognizing what Wyoming residents cared about a long time ago. The official argued that the Wyoming representative launched a war against former President Trump, which was allegedly a sign that she was breaking off with the state, Fox News reported.

Just last week, Cheney called on the Republican Party to reject former President Trump's lies and go back to their identity that was based on "fidelity to the Constitution ... [and] the rule of law." Republicans in Washington, D.C., also removed Cheney from a top congressional GOP leadership position in May after the Wyoming representative's continued criticism of former President Trump.

Cheney previously argued that Trump's false claims that voter fraud cost him the 2020 presidential elections against Joe Biden were unproven. The official had also endured a previous attempt of other officials to remove her as chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, a role that contributes to shaping the GOP messaging in the chamber, NBC News reported.

Cheney also criticized House Republicans who continued to support Trump despite his continued attempts to "unravel the foundations of our constitutional republic." The Wyoming official said that political leaders who were silent were already aiding Trump as well.