Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) is sharing her thoughts on if she would vote for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for speaker if Republicans win back the House majority.
Cheney told Politico she would not back McCarthy, adding, “I think that we’ve got to have leaders who lead based on principle, and that’s not what we’ve seen from him.”
House Republicans voted to remove Cheney from her leadership position following her criticism of former President Donald Trump.
Earlier this month, McCarthy was caught on a hot mic expressing his frustration with Cheney, as Axios reported.
“I think she’s got real problems,” he told Fox News’ Steve Doocey, adding, “I’ve had it with … I’ve had it with her. You know, I’ve lost confidence.”
During a Fox News interview last week, McCarthy voiced his support for efforts to replace Cheney with Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and argued, “We are in one of our biggest battles ever for this nation and the direction, whether this next century will be ours. As conference chair, you have one of the most critical jobs as the messenger of going forward.”
He said Republicans need “a conference that’s united, that’s why we need a conference chair that is delivering that message day in and day out.”
Stefanik was elected as the new No. 3 House Republican on Friday, as IJR reported.
She told Fox News on Monday that Cheney is “looking backwards. Republicans are looking forward. We are unified and we are talking about conservative principles.”
Turning her attention to Trump, Stefanik explained, “President Trump is an important voice in the Republican Party. We are working as one team.”
McCarthy and Cheney have previously disagreed over whether Trump has a role in the party moving forward.
According to Stefanik, voters across the nation and in her own district “believe that President Trump’s results, whether it was the economic growth, whether it was the historic accords in the Middle East, whether it was being tough on China or the bipartisan coronavirus relief packages, these were significant results that helped everyday Americans.”
