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Liz Cheney Continues to Come Off As Desperate As She Goes After Trump

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  December 04, 2023 8:30 PM

Former Rep. Liz Cheney's (R-WY) book, "Oath and Honor" is set to come out on Tuesday, and so naturally she is hyping it up. As we covered last week at the time, CNN got an exclusive preview, and their write-up and network segments just ate it up. A particular narrative, as you've no doubt guessed, has focused on the supposed danger that former and potentially future President Donald Trump is. Cheney even regarded Trump as "the most dangerous man ever to inhabit the Oval Office." She also made such suggestions as she'd leave the Republican Party if Trump became the nominee, or that she might even run for president herself.

"Liz Cheney" was trending again over X on Monday, as the former congresswoman went for a further touch of bitterness. Outlets other than CNN have covered details from the book, with The Hill putting out several articles on Monday about Cheney and the claims made in her book. 

While speaking to Savannah Guthrie on NBC's "TODAY," Cheney expressed "I hope that there are options and alternatives that reflect the important challenges that we’re facing, and that reflect leadership to meet those challenges." As she continued, though, it was clear she wasn't merely speaking to the merits of having a primary with other candidates to choose from, as Cheney went on to say "but that choice can never be Donald Trump because a vote for Donald Trump may mean the last election that you ever get to vote in."

Cheney went on to claim that "I don’t say that lightly, and I think it’s heartbreaking that that’s where we are, but people have to recognize that a vote for Donald Trump is a vote against the Constitution," as she continued with the hyperbolic language.

As The Hill aptly put it in that article:

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Cheney, a longtime critic of Trump, has been on a media blitz to promote her forthcoming book, “Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning,” which details the state of the Republican Party and its response to the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. She reiterated Monday that she “will never vote for Donald Trump” and “will do whatever it takes to make sure that Donald Trump is defeated in 2024.”

A subsequent article from The Hill covered appearances from both Cheney and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). Cheney had spoken to John Dickerson on "CBS Sunday Morning," for an appearance during which she claimed what we are experiencing today "is sort of a sleepwalking into dictatorship in the United States." 

Cheney had been answering Dickerson's question as to what she meant when saying Trump being reelected "will mean the end of the republic." As she went on to insult the intelligence of her fellow Americans and her fellow Republicans, Cheney also claimed that "people who say 'well, if he's elected it's not that dangerous because we have all of these checks and balances' don't fully understand the extent to which the Republicans in Congress today have been coopted."

Graham, who was asked about Cheney's claims by Dana Bash during his appearance on CNN's "State of the Union."

"I think Liz [Cheney's] hatred of Trump is real. I understand why people don't like what he does and says at times. But in terms of actions and results, he was a far better president for -- Biden. And if we have four more years of this, Liz Cheney, then we won't recognize America and the world will be truly on fire," he responded.

Not only is it still likely that Trump will earn the nomination once more--he leads his opponents by +47.8, according to RealClearPolitics--he could beat President Joe Biden if 2024 in fact turns out to be a rematch of 2020. Polling also shows him with a lead of +1.7 against the current president.

As CNN highlighted last week, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung offered that the book belongs "in the fiction section of the bookstore," and that "These are nothing more than completely fabricated stories." 

Trump himself spoke about the book in a TruthSocial post from Sunday, which countered another claim from Cheney, that Trump wasn't eating after January 6, 2021. 

This desperation is who Cheney is and has been for some years now, though. Despite having a House Republican leadership position and voting with Trump most of the time, she then led the charge among those House Republicans looking to impeach Trump the second time around. Her position as vice chair on the January 6 select committee only further went to her head.

Cheney was ousted from Congress when she lost her primary in August of last year to now Rep. Harriet Hageman by nearly 40 points. Several other members from that now former select committee are also no longer in office. The only other Republican member, former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (IL) retired after Illinois Democrats pretty much redistricted his seat out of existence. Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) lost last November to now Rep. Jen Kiggans (R), and former Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) also retired rather than lose her bid for reelection.