House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is insisting that Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) was not stripped of her leadership position to punish her for speaking out against former President Donald Trump.

During a press conference on Thursday, McCarthy was asked, “Why is it that the only thing Republicans will punish one of their own members for, in this Congress, is speaking out against Donald Trump?”

“How is it? I don’t understand your question,” the California Republican responded.

The reporter said, “The only Republican who’s been in any way punished by the conference this year is Liz Cheney.”

“I’m sorry, did she lose a committee?” McCarthy asked.

When the reporter noted that the Wyoming Republican Congresswoman was stripped of her leadership position, the Republican leader said, “That’s an election. She didn’t get punished by that. She lost an election. I’m sorry. People go up for election all the time. No basis there.”

Watch the video below:

On Wednesday, the House voted 223 to 207 to censure Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and strip him of his committee assignments.

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Just two Republicans voted in favor of the measure. One Republican voted present.

On Nov. 8, Gosar shared a controversial anime video that showed him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and swinging a sword at President Joe Biden, as IJR reported.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told CNN, “He took the video down, and he made a statement that he doesn’t support violence to anybody. Nobody should have violence .”

“I called him when I heard about the video, and he made a statement that he doesn’t support violence, and he took the video down.”

However, the network noted McCarthy did “not directly condemn Gosar’s behavior.”

Earlier this year, House Republicans voted to remove Cheney from her role as the No. 3 Republican in the chamber after she repeatedly criticized Trump.