Liz Cheney | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2018 | |
| Vice Chair of theHouse January 6 Committee | |
| In office September 2, 2021 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Chair of the House Republican Conference | |
| In office January 3, 2019 – May 12, 2021 | |
| Deputy | Mark Walker Mike Johnson |
| Leader | Kevin McCarthy |
| Preceded by | Cathy McMorris Rodgers |
| Succeeded by | Elise Stefanik |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWyoming'sat-large district | |
| In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Cynthia Lummis |
| Succeeded by | Harriet Hageman |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Elizabeth Lynne Cheney (1966-07-28)July 28, 1966 (age 59) Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5 |
| Parents | |
| Relatives | Mary Cheney (sister) |
| Education | Colorado College (BA) University of Chicago (JD) |
| Awards | Presidential Citizens Medal (2025) |
| Signature |  |
Elizabeth Lynne Cheney[1] (/ˈtʃeɪni/; born July 28, 1966)[2] is an Americanattorney and former politician who was theU.S. representative forWyoming's at-large congressional district from 2017 to 2023, and served as chair of theHouse Republican Conference from 2019 to 2021. A member of theRepublican Party, she is known for her vocal opposition toDonald Trump.[3][4][5]
Cheney is the elder daughter of former vice presidentDick Cheney andsecond ladyLynne Cheney. She held several positions in theU.S. State Department during theGeorge W. Bush administration. She promotedregime change in Iran while chairing theIran Syria Policy and Operations Group withElliott Abrams. In 2009, Cheney andBill Kristol founded Keep America Safe, a nonprofit organization concerned withnational security issues that supported the Bush–Cheney administration's positions. In2014 she was briefly a candidate for theU.S. Senate inWyoming, challenging incumbentMike Enzi before withdrawing. She was elected to theHouse of Representatives in2016, holding the same seat her father had held from 1979 to 1989.[6]
Regarded as a leading ideologicalneoconservative[7][8][9] in theBush–Cheney tradition as well as representative of the Republican establishment,[10] Cheney is known for her pro-business stances andhawkish foreign policy views.[11][12][13] She was critical of theforeign policy of the first Donald Trump administration while consistently voting in favor of Trump's overall agenda.[14][15][16][17]
Cheney supportedthe second impeachment of Donald Trump following the2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol.[18] Her impeachment vote and criticism of Donald Trump led to her eventual removal from Republican leadership in May 2021.[19][20][21] In July 2021, SpeakerNancy Pelosi appointed Cheney to theHouse Select Committee on the January 6 Attack. Two months later, she was made vice chair of the committee. Her role on the committee resulted in theWyoming Republican Party revoking Cheney's membership in November 2021 as well as censure from theRepublican National Committee in February 2022.[22][23]
In 2022, Cheneylost renomination in Wyoming's Republican primary to Trump-endorsedHarriet Hageman in a landslide, garnering just 28.9% of the vote.[24] Cheney has said that she intends to be "the leader, one of the leaders, in a fight to help to restore" the Republican Party.[25] She later endorsed and campaigned forKamala Harris'sunsuccessful run in the2024 presidential election.[26][27] In 2024, she was awarded thePresidential Citizens Medal by Joe Biden andpardoned from potential future prosecution. As of March 2023, she is aprofessor of practice at theUniversity of Virginia Center for Politics.
Elizabeth Lynne Cheney was born on July 28, 1966,[28] inMadison, Wisconsin.[29] She is the elder of two daughters of former vice presidentDick Cheney and formersecond ladyLynne Cheney (née Vincent). At the time of her birth, her parents were studying at theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison. Her younger sister,Mary Cheney, was also born in Madison. Cheney attended part of sixth and seventh grade inCasper, Wyoming, while her father campaigned for Congress.[30][31] The family divided its time between Casper and Washington, D.C., in the 1970s through the 1980s, following her father's election to Congress.[32] In 1984 Cheney graduated fromMcLean High School insuburban Washington, D.C., where she was a cheerleader. In 1988, Cheney received herB.A. inpolitical science in fromColorado College, her mother's alma mater, where she wrote a senior thesis entitled "The Evolution of Presidential War Powers."[33][2] She received herJ.D. degree from theUniversity of ChicagoLaw School in 1996. While there, she also took courses inMiddle Eastern history at theOriental Institute.[34]
Before attending law school, Cheney worked for the State Department for five years and theUnited States Agency for International Development between 1989 and 1993. After 1993, she took a job at Armitage Associates LLP, the consulting firm founded byRichard Armitage, then a formerDefense Department official and later thedeputy secretary of state.[35]
After graduation from law school, Cheney practiced law at thelaw firm ofWhite & Case and as aninternational law attorney and consultant at theInternational Finance Corporation, a member of theWorld Bank Group. She was also special assistant to the deputy secretary of state for assistance to the formerSoviet Union, and aUSAID officer in U.S. embassies inBudapest andWarsaw.[36]
In 2002, Cheney was appointed deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs,[37][38] a preexisting vacant post with an "economic portfolio", a mandate to promote investment in the region. Amid reports, including aNew York Times op-ed piece byPaul Krugman,[39] that the job was created especially for her, State Department spokesmanRichard Boucher said that she had come recommended by then-Secretary of StateColin Powell.[40][41]The Sunday Times reported that Cheney's appointment was "the most intriguing sign that America is getting serious about Middle East reform" and "a measure of the seriousness with which the administration was taking Middle East programmes for literacy, education, and reform."[42] The appointment followed publicized policy divisions between the vice president's office and the State Department on Middle East policy. In that position, she was given control of theMiddle East Partnership Initiative, designed to "foster increased democracy and economic progress in a troubled region". The program spent $29 million in 2002, increased to $129 million in the following year. Cheney's task was to channel money to prescreened groups, some of which were not identified publicly for fear of retaliations from extant governments they sought to undermine. For the budget year 2004, the project sought $145 million.[43][44]
After two years, Cheney left her State Department post in 2003 to work for theBush–Cheney 2004 reelection campaign. She participated in the campaign's "W Stands for Women" initiative to target female voters.[45]
On February 14, 2005, she returned to the U.S. State Department and was appointedprincipal deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs and coordinator for broader Middle East and North Africa initiatives.[46][47] In this position, Cheney supported the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs,C. David Welch, and coordinated multilateral efforts to promote and support democracy and expand education and economic opportunities in the Middle East and North Africa. Cheney oversaw the launch of two semi-independent foundations, the Fund of the Future (worth $100 million), to provide capital for small businesses, and the Foundation of the Future (worth $55 million), to promote freedom of the press and democracy.[48] In that capacity, Cheney endorsed a draft of a new Iraqi constitution.[49]
Cheney also headed theIran Syria Policy and Operations Group (ISOG), established in March 2006, a unit within the State Department'sBureau of Near Eastern Affairs.
In April 2006,The New York Times published a story that was critical of Cheney's work, particularly with respect toIran. TheInternational Republican Institute, a grants program administered by Cheney's unit in collaboration with a Republican-affiliated foundation, received particular scrutiny.[50] Shortly before the ISOG group was dissolved, Secretary of StateCondoleezza Rice initiated a major effort to engage Iran and Syria in efforts to stabilize Iraq.[51]
In June 2007 Cheney signed on as one of three national co-chairs ofFred Thompson's2008 presidential campaign. The others wereSpencer Abraham andGeorge Allen. In a press release issued at the beginning of his campaign, Thompson said he was "very pleased to announce that former senators Abraham and Allen, as well as Liz Cheney, will serve as co-chairs of my national leadership team". He added: "These distinguished individuals bring wise counsel and invaluable experience to my campaign leadership team, and they will play a critical role in helping spread my consistent conservative message across America."[52] After Thompson dropped out of the race, Cheney joinedMitt Romney's presidential campaign as a senior foreign policy advisor.[53]
In October 2009, Liz Cheney,William Kristol, andDeborah Burlingame launched, as board members, the nonprofit501(c)(4) organization Keep America Safe. The group's stated purpose is to "provide information for concerned Americans about critical national security issues".[54] It drew strong criticism from conservative lawyers, many of whom had worked for the Bush administration, after its campaign against "The Al Qaeda 7", seven Justice Department lawyers in the Obama administration who previously had worked as defense lawyers forGuantanamo detainees.[55] Shortly after, all information about the organization disappeared from the Internet.[56]
In January 2012, Cheney was hired as a contributor forFox News. She guest-hosted programs such asHannity andFox News Sunday.[57] The network terminated her contract in July 2013 after she started her 2014 bid for the Senate in Wyoming.[58]
On July 16, 2013, Cheney launched arun for the Senate in 2014 from Wyoming as a Republican, challenging incumbent Republican senatorMike Enzi.[59] The National Republican Senatorial Committee said it would back Enzi, as was policy.[60] Cheney was expected to receive strong fundraising, but was subject to public perceptions ofcarpetbagging, having lived in Wyoming only a few years as a child before purchasing a home there in 2012.[61][62][63][64] When she launched her 2014 Senate campaign, she did it with a Facebook post geotagged toMcLean, Virginia, her primary residence at the time.[65] During that campaign,The New Republic columnist Jon Ward wrote, "she talked up her Wyoming roots and dressed in boots. But when I chatted with her at one stop, her jeans were so new that her hands were stained blue from touching them."[63] In the video she noted that the Cheney family first came to Wyoming in 1852.[61] Her father represented Wyoming in the House from 1979 to 1989.[61]
In her first campaign appearance in Cheyenne, Cheney said, "We have to not be afraid of being called obstructionists. Obstructing President Obama's policies and his agenda isn't actually obstruction; it's patriotism."[66] Cheney claimed that Obama had "literally declared war" on theFirst andSecond amendments to theUnited States Constitution as well as the interests of Wyoming ranchers and energy workers who faced regulations from theUnited States Environmental Protection Agency.[66]
Cheney's campaign was marred by criticism from her championing of "hawkish" foreign policy positions to a public spat with her sister over her opposition tosame-sex marriage. Enzi's continuing popularity made it difficult for Cheney to make inroads with Wyoming Republicans. On January 6, 2014, Cheney withdrew from the race, citing family health issues.[67][68]
After Wyoming congresswomanCynthia Lummis retired in the fall of 2015, Cheney launched a campaign for her House seat on February 1, 2016. She was widely considered the front-runner, and a poll commissioned by theCasper Star-Tribune andWyoming PBS showed her leading in the Republican primary.[69] She won a crowded Republican primary with 38% of the vote, and went on to win the general election.
In the November 6 general election, Cheney was reelected to the House with 127,951 votes, defeating Democrat Greg Hunter (59,898 votes), Libertarian Richard Brubaker (6,918) and Constitution Party candidate Daniel Clyde Cummings (6,069). Cheney won 21 of 23 counties, losing Albany and Teton Counties to Hunter. On November 14, the Republican membership elected Cheney chair of the House Republican Conference for the 116th Congress. In this post, she was the third-ranking Republican in the chamber, behind Minority LeaderKevin McCarthy and Minority WhipSteve Scalise.[70]
Cheney defeated Blake Stanley in the Republican primary with 73% of the vote, and Democrat Lynnette Grey Bull in the general election with 69% of the vote.[71]
Cheney lost the August 16, 2022, Republican primary to pro-Trump candidateHarriet Hageman,[72] with 28.9% of the vote to Hageman's 66.3%. Her margin of defeat was the second-worst for a House incumbent in the last 60 years, behind that of South Carolina RepublicanBob Inglis ina 2010 primary runoff.[73]
Cheney was sworn into office on January 3, 2017. Donald Trump became president that same month, and an analysis byFiveThirtyEight found Cheney supported Trump's position in 92.9% of House votes.[74]
She co-sponsored legislation that would end protection for gray wolves in theEndangered Species Act.[75]
In May 2019, Cheney said thatPeter Strzok and another FBI agent who sent personal text messages in which they disparaged various politicians (including Trump) sounded as if they were planning a "coup" and may be guilty of "treason".[76][77]
In June 2019,Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez compared the holding centers for illegal immigrants at theMexico–United States border to "concentration camps". Cheney criticized her words, saying they showed "disrespect" forHolocaust victims.[78]
Speaking as chairwoman at a House Republican Conference in August 2019, Cheney said that the successful litigation (Crow Tribe et al v.Zinke) by Native tribes and environmentalists to return the grizzly bear inGreater Yellowstone to theEndangered Species Act "was not based on science or facts" but motivated by plaintiffs' "intent on destroying our Western way of life". Her statements drew comments from indigenous tribal nations and environmentalists. Tribal nations hold the grizzly sacred, and environmentalists have voiced concerns about trophy hunts, livestock and logging interests, and the gas, coal, and oil extraction industries.[79][80]
Cheney condemned theTurkish invasion of theKurdish areas in Syria, which was made possible by Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. military forces that served as a buffer between Turkey and the Kurdish areas in Syria, saying, "The U.S. is abandoning our ally the Kurds, who fought ISIS on the ground and helped protect the U.S. homeland. This decision aids America's adversaries, Russia, Iran, and Turkey, and paves the way for a resurgence of ISIS."[81] Cheney partly blamed the Democratic Party and the impeachment inquiry into Trump for Turkey's actions, saying, "It was not an accident that the Turks chose this moment to roll across the border."[82][83] A spokesperson for House SpeakerNancy Pelosi called Cheney's claim about the impact of U.S. presidential impeachment proceedings on the invasion "delusional".[82]
At a House Republican Conference in July 2020, some Republicans, includingJim Jordan ofOhio andAndy Biggs ofArizona, criticized Cheney for defendingDr. Fauci amid theCOVID-19 pandemic, and for previously endorsingKentucky CongressmanThomas Massie's primary opponent.[84]
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In September 2020, Cheney asked theJustice Department to investigateenvironmental groups such as theNRDC, Sea Change, and theSierra Club, saying that "robust political and judicial activism – combined with the fact that these groups often espouse views that align with those of our adversaries – makes it all the more critical that the Department is aware of any potential foreign influence within or targeting these groups. I urge the Department to investigate Chinese and Russian attempts to influence environmental and energy policy in the United States".[85]
Beginning during his time as aDublin, California city councilman,Eric Swalwell was targeted by a Chinese woman believed to be an undercover officer of China'sMinistry of State Security. Swalwell's general relationship with a suspectedChinese agent has been characterized as problematic, particularly given his high-profile role as a member of theHouse Intelligence Committee.[86] Cheney signed a letter demanding Swalwell's removal from the House Intelligence Committee. She also said, "the extent to which [the Chinese Communist Party] caused [COVID-19] to be spread around the world has really shone a spotlight on the nature of that regime, and has really focused the attention of not just people in the United States but our allies around the world on the threat that they pose and how important it is we protect ourselves by moving supply chains, by ending our dependence on the Chinese government".[87][88]
During theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Cheney voted against theAmerican Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and theCOVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, but for thePPP Extension Act.[89][90][91]
From 2017 to 2021, Cheney voted in line with Trump's position around 93% of the time, supporting him more consistently in House votes than many House Republican members, even his former chief of staffMark Meadows.[92] In 2019, according to theNew York Times, Cheney publicly feuded withRand Paul over who was "Trumpier".[93] According toThe Atlantic, she was a "loyal Trumpist" and helped build "the party of Trump" at that time.[94]
The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution.
— Liz Cheney
Cheney voted against impeaching Trump on both articles duringTrump's first impeachment on December 18, 2019.[95] On January 12, 2021, following theJanuary 6 United States Capitol attack duringthe certification process for President-electJoe Biden, Cheney said duringTrump's second impeachment that she would vote to impeach Trump for his role in inciting the attack. Cheney said that Trump "lit the flame" of the riot and did nothing to stop it. Saying, "there has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath", she supported impeachment.[96][97] Nine other Republicans joined her in doing so on January 13.[98] She was then the third-ranking Republican in the House.[99]Jim Jordan (one of 139 House members, and 8 senators, who voted for — or supported — the objections to the Electoral College count) called for her removal from Republican Party leadership.[100] Andy Biggs took offense specifically with the wording of Cheney's remark, saying: "She puts out a statement saying that what this president did is maybe one of the most heinous things in the history of the US presidency. Her words were used over and over again when the Democrats were making their speeches on the floor of the House. And they will be used again when the Senate opens up another bogus trial in the Senate. That is what the problem is."[101]
Former presidentGeorge W. Bush's spokesman said on January 30 that Bush supported Cheney's actions and intended to call his former vice president,Dick Cheney, to "thank him for his daughter's service".[102] Days later, Senate minority leaderMitch McConnell said, "Liz Cheney is a leader with deep convictions and the courage to act on them. She is an important leader in our party and in our nation. I am grateful for her service and look forward to continuing to work with her on the crucial issues facing our nation".[103] McConnell also condemned Trump supporters' "loony lies".[104] SenatorLindsey Graham said Cheney "is one of the strongest and most reliable conservative voices in the Republican Party. She is a fiscal and social conservative, and no one works harder to ensure that our military is well prepared".[105]
Trump supporters were angered by Cheney's vote to impeach. On February 3, 2021, the House Republican Conference held a closed-door, secret-ballot vote on whether to remove her from her position in the Republican House leadership. She held her position by a 145–61 vote, with one member voting present. After the vote, Cheney said, "we're not going to be divided and that we're not going to be in a situation where people can pick off any member of leadership".[106][107] On February 6, the Wyoming Republican Partycensured Cheney for her vote to impeach Trump.[108] Cheney responded, "My vote to impeach was compelled by the oath I swore to the Constitution. Wyoming citizens know that this oath does not bend or yield to politics or partisanship. I will always fight for Wyoming values and stand up for our Western way of life."[108] She rejected the Wyoming party's demands that she step down and noted the censure incorrectly asserted that the Capitol attack was instigated byantifa andBlack Lives Matter.[109][110]
Cheney raised the possibility of a criminal investigation of Trump for provoking violence[111] and said he "does not have a role as a leader of our party going forward".[112][113] In April 2021, she said she would not vote for him if he were the Republican nominee for president in 2024.[114] In May 2021, she said: "I will do everything I can to ensure that [Trump] never again gets anywhere near the Oval Office" and "we cannot let the former president drag us backward and make us complicit in his efforts to unravel our democracy."[115]
In his first speech since the Capitol attack, Trump attacked the Bush administration for launching the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, and described Liz Cheney as a "warmonger" and "a person that loves seeing our troops fighting" for her support for the Bush administration's foreign policy.[116]
In March 2021 former Republican speakerPaul Ryan stated his support for Cheney.[117]Salon wrote that although Cheney is "arch-conservative", she is "now considered too liberal for some GOP extremists".[118] Maryland GovernorLarry Hogan said "Liz Cheney is a solid conservative Republican" who "just stood up and told the truth" in May 2021.[119]
In March 2022, in an interview onMeet The Press, Cheney said she didn't regret her vote against impeaching Trump during his first impeachment for his role in theTrump–Ukraine scandal, following theRussian invasion of Ukraine.[120]
In response to rising calls from House Republicans for her to be removed from her position as House Republican Conference chair after her ongoing criticism of Trump, Cheney wrote an opinion article, "The GOP is at a turning point. History is watching us", published inThe Washington Post on May 5, 2021. In it, she reiterated her positions on adhering to the principles of the U.S. Constitution, upholding the law, and defending "the basic principles that underpin and protect our freedom and our democratic process".[121] SenatorJoni Ernst criticized the GOP's efforts to remove Cheney from party leadership, comparing it tocancel culture.[122]
On the eve of a House Republican vote to remove her, Cheney madean address on the House floor after her colleagues had left the chamber, saying in part:
Today we face a threat America has never seen before. A former president, who provoked a violent attack on this Capitol in an effort to steal the election, has resumed his aggressive effort to convince Americans that the election was stolen from him. He risks inciting further violence. Millions of Americans have been misled by the former president. They have heard only his words, but not the truth, as he continues to undermine our democratic process, sowing seeds of doubt about whether democracy really works at all. I am a conservative Republican and the most conservative of conservative principles is reverence for the rule of law. The Electoral College has voted. More than sixty state and federal courts, including multiple judges he appointed, have rejected the former president's claims. The Department of Justice in his administration investigated the former president's claims of widespread fraud and found no evidence to support them. The election is over. That is the rule of law. That is our constitutional process. Those who refuse to accept the rulings of our courts are at war with the Constitution.[123][124]
Cheney was formally removed by voice vote at a closed-door House Republican Conference meeting on May 12, 2021, and was replaced byElise Stefanik.[19][125] Five GOP representatives requested a recorded vote, but McCarthy chose to decide the matter by voice vote.[126] As it was a voice vote conducted behind closed doors, it was unclear which lawmakers supported her ouster.[125]
After her battles with Republican leadership, Cheney spent $58,000 on a private security detail.[127]
On July 1, 2021, Cheney was appointed by House speaker Nancy Pelosi to the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack.[128] Cheney served as vice chair of the committee.[129]
While addressing the committee in June 2022, Cheney "offered a stark message to members of her party who continue to support former president Donald Trump and downplay the events of Jan. 6. 'Tonight, I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain', she said".[130]
On January 20, 2025, just hours before he left office,President Biden preemptively pardoned the January 6th Committee members in an extraordinary use of executive power against future prosecution. The President said that "the issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense. Our nation owes these public servants a debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment to our country."[131][132][133] On January 2, 2025, citing her work on the committee and record of public service, Cheney was awarded thePresidential Citizens Medal by Biden, who described Cheney and fellow recipientBennie Thompson as "elected officials who served in difficult times with honor, decency, and ensure our democracy delivers".[134][135][136]
On November 13, 2021, the Wyoming GOP Central Committee voted 31–29 to no longer recognize Cheney as a member of the party. The resolution reiterated the general complaint for which it had censured her the previous February, saying that Cheney had never provided "quantifiable and or undisputed evidence" for why she had voted in favor of impeachment.[137] There had been similar votes by two Wyoming counties three months earlier to remove her from the party.[138]
On February 4, 2022, the Republican National Committee called the events of January 6, 2021 "legitimate political discourse" and overwhelmingly voted tocensure Cheney and RepresentativeAdam Kinzinger byvoice vote for taking part in the House investigation of the Capitol assault.[139]
Cheney has described herself as aconservative Republican.[141]Lawrence R. Jacobs has said, "Cheney is an arch-conservative. She's a hard-edged, small government, lower taxes figure and a leading voice on national defense."[142]Jake Bernstein argued that "Liz Cheney is a true conservative in every sense of the word and she's only a moderate in relation to the radicalism that has seized the Republican party."[142]Politico called her the "face of the anti-Trump GOP and a relic of the Republican Party before the dominance of Trump."[143]
Cheney has several times been described as "Republican royalty".[144][145]The National Interest called her the "heiress to aneoconservative throne".[7]Salon called her "arch-conservative".[118] TheBrookings Institution argued that Cheney has a long-term strategy to become the leader of the Republican Party in the post-Trump era, and that "she's a real conservative—Democrats who like her opposition to Trump will never like her politics."[146]
Conservative RepublicanJohn Bolton has described Cheney as "a person of integrity and character" who is involved in politics for philosophical reasons rather than self-interest, and who shares the determination of her father.[147]
In May 2021, Cheney said that she intended to be "the leader, one of the leaders, in a fight to help to restore our party".[25] Following her primary defeat in August 2022, Cheney filed paperwork with theFederal Election Commission creating aleadership political action committee (PAC) named The Great Task. The PAC's name comes fromthe Gettysburg Address: Lincoln spoke of the "great task remaining before us".[148] In September 2022, Cheney stated "if [Donald Trump] is the nominee, I won't be a Republican."[149] The following May, The Great Task ran an ad inNew Hampshire advising Republican primary voters not to support Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.[150] As recently as June 2023, Cheney declined to rule out a presidential bid in 2024.[151]
Beginning in 2021, Cheney repeatedly expressed an openness to potentially running for president in2024.[152][153][154] On September 4, 2024, Cheney told a group of students atDuke University that she would be voting forKamala Harris in the 2024 election, stating that, "As a conservative and someone who believes in and cares about the Constitution ... I will be voting for Kamala Harris.”[155]
During the2022 midterm elections, Cheney said she would campaign against Republican candidates whodenied or questioned the results of the2020 presidential election.[156] Herpolitical action committee, the Great Task, ran TV ads imploring Republican voters in Arizona to vote againstKari Lake andMark Finchem, the Republican nominees for governor and secretary of state, respectively. (Both lost.)[157] In October 2022, she endorsed Democratic congresswomanElissa Slotkin for reelection over Republican nomineeTom Barrett, aMichiganstate senator who questioned the results of the 2020 election.[157] According to Cheney, her endorsement of Slotkin was her first ever of a Democrat.[158] Cheney also expressed support forOhio DemocratTim Ryan in hisU.S. Senate campaign against RepublicanJD Vance; Vance supported false claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election.[159] Cheney also endorsed Democratic congresswomenAbigail Spanberger over her Republican opponent, Yesli Vega, who Cheney said promoted conspiracy theories.[160]
On December 5, 2023, Cheney released a memoir, titledOath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning, in which she recounted her experience before, during, and after January 6, as well as her time serving as Vice Chair of theJanuary 6th Committee, and admonished many of her Republican colleagues, including former House speakerKevin McCarthy and current speakerMike Johnson.[161] The book quickly sold out and became a bestseller.[162]
In a speech at the Democracy Summit atDartmouth College on January 5, Cheney urged voters to rejectDonald Trump as the Republican presidential nominee in the 2024 election, saying, "Show the world that we will defeat the plague of cowardice sweeping through the Republican Party."[163] The next day, Cheney posted a tweet, criticizing comments by Trump on theAmerican Civil War, in which he said, "I'm so attracted to seeing it, so many mistakes were made...There was something that could've been negotiated."[164] Cheney wrote, "Question for members of the GOP—the party of Lincoln—who have endorsed Donald Trump: How can you possibly defend this?"[165]
On April 22, 2024, Cheney published an essay inThe New York Times urging theSupreme Court of the United States to quickly decide onpresidential immunity to allow thelegal proceedings of former President Trump to overturn the 2020 election to proceed in a timely manner.[166]
In September 2024, Cheney said in an interview withMadison, Wisconsin'sThe Capital Times that Trump has "so corrupted" the Republican Party during his nine years there that it's causing the Republican Party to die and possibly become unsalvageable and that traditional conservatives such as herself may have to start a new conservative party to revive pre-Trump style conservatism.[167]
Cheney has supported bills to further restrictopioids in the face of theopioid epidemic.[168] She voted against theMarijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act of 2019/2020 (H.R. 3884), which, among other things, would have removedcannabis from the list of scheduled substances regulated by theControlled Substances Act and establish a process to expunge criminal convictions for cannabis.[169][170]
Cheney has largely been considered aneoconservative and aninterventionist.[9] She opposed proposals to withdraw fromAfghanistan.[171] Cheney has criticized what she has called the "Putin wing" of the Republican Party.[172][173]
When working in theUnited States Department of State asDeputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, Cheney supported theIraq War, as promoted by her father, Dick Cheney.[174][better source needed]
According toMother Jones, Cheney insists "that one of the main lies of the Bush-Cheney fraudulent case for war—that there had been a significant connection between al-Qaeda and Iraq—was true."[175]New York Times columnistMaureen Dowd has commented that Cheney used "her patronage perch in the State Department during the Bush-Cheney years ... [and] bolstered her father's trumped-up case for an invasion of Iraq" while cheering "on her dad as he spread fear, propaganda and warped intelligence".[176]
Cheney is a strong supporter of Israel and has expressed support for Israeli plans toannex parts of the occupiedWest Bank.[177] She signed a letter to Israeli prime ministerBenjamin Netanyahu that reaffirms "the unshakeable alliance between the United States and Israel".[178]
In 2015, Cheney and her father expressed opposition to theJoint Comprehensive Plan of Action, saying that it would "lead to a nuclear-armedIran".[179] On June 21, 2019, after Trump called off military strikes against Iran forallegedly downing an American drone, Cheney compared Trump not attacking Iran toBarack Obama not attackingSyria in 2013.[180] On September 18, 2019, she called for the United States to consider a "proportional military response" against Iran after it wasattacking oil bases in theSaudi regions ofAbqaiq andKhurais.[181]
On June 17, 2021, Cheney was one of 160 House Republicans to vote against repealing the2002 AUMF, which granted theBush administration the authority to wagewar withIraq. She said that repealing the resolution "would send a message of weakness to our adversaries and allies alike".[182]
Cheney opposes theno-first-use nuclear policy. After the second round of the2020 Democratic Party presidential debates, Cheney criticizedElizabeth Warren when she advocated the policy.[183][184] Cheney voted to include provisions to draft women in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022.[185]
Cheney has supported the use of torture. In 2009, she defended the use ofwaterboarding during theGeorge W. Bush administration, comparing it toSERE training.[186][187][188] In 2014, she criticized PresidentBarack Obama after he said, "we tortured some folks".[189] Also that year, she criticizedNancy Pelosi for calling out her father for his support of using torture.[190]
In 2018, when U.S. senatorJohn McCain criticizedCIA director nomineeGina Haspel, Cheney again defended the use of so-calledenhanced interrogation techniques, saying that they "saved lives, prevented attacks, and produced intel that led toOsama bin Laden". Cheney's remarks were criticized byMeghan McCain, who responded that her father—who was tortured as a prisoner of war during theVietnam War—"doesn't need torture explained to him".[191]
On September 26, 2021, during an interview withLesley Stahl on60 Minutes, Cheney reaffirmed her support for waterboarding, saying that it is not torture.[192]
Cheney was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish theJanuary 6 commission meant to investigate thestorming of the U.S. Capitol.[193][194][195] Before the vote, she was one of few Republican lawmakers who openly expressed support for the commission.[196]
On October 21, 2021, Cheney was one of nine House Republicans who voted to hold Steve Bannon incontempt of Congress.[197]
In 2013, during her Senate bid, Cheney voiced her opposition tosame-sex marriage.[198] This caused a public falling-out with her sister,Mary Cheney, who is gay and wrote in a Facebook post, "Either [y]ou think all families should be treated equally or you don't. Liz's position is to treat my family as second class citizens."[199][a] Mary declared she would not support Liz's2014 Senate candidacy.[201] The family spat becoming a focus of media attention was cited as one of the reasons Cheney ended her Senate campaign.[202]
On September 26, 2021, during an interview withLesley Stahl on60 Minutes, Cheney expressed regret for not supporting same-sex marriage.[192] She was one of 47 Republicans to vote for theRespect for Marriage Act of 2022, which would codify same-sex marriage into federal law, and passed the House, 267–157.[203]
In 2022, Cheney voted for H.R. 8373 ("The Right to Contraception Act"), a bill designed to protect access to contraceptives and health care providers' ability to provide contraceptives and information about contraception.[204]
Cheney, stating she had, "always been strongly pro-life" spoke in praise of the Supreme Court's overturn ofRoe v. Wade as part of theirDobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling.[205] Cheney's opposition to abortion has earned her a 0% approval rating from thePlanned Parenthood action fund, and a 93% approval rating from theNational Right to Life Committee.[206]
Communications academicBud Goodall, writing in his 2010 book on progressive influence, called Cheney a "conspiracy propagandist".[207][neutrality isdisputed] Cheney has denounced the far-right conspiracy theoryQAnon, saying, "QAnon is a dangerous lunacy that should have no place in American politics".[208]
In 2009, Cheney refused to denounce adherents ofBarack Obama citizenship conspiracy theories (birtherism) onLarry King Live, saying that the birtherism movement existed because "people are uncomfortable with a president who is reluctant to defend the nation overseas".[209][210] According toMother Jones, the Obama citizenship conspiracy theory was an "odious lie that Liz Cheney also defended".[175] In 2009, Cheney gave the keynote address at a dinner hosted by theCenter for Security Policy, an anti-Muslimthink tank deemed a hate group by theSouthern Poverty Law Center[211][212] and known for promoting the false claim that Obama is a Muslim.[213]
On September 4, 2024, Liz Cheney announced at Duke University that she is supportingKamala Harris for president. "And as a conservative, as someone who believes in and cares about the Constitution, I have thought deeply about this, and because of the danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump, but I will be voting for Kamala Harris" she said. On September 6, 2024, her fatherDick Cheney announced that he is supporting Kamala Harris and the Democratic ticket for president of the United States and that Trump is a "threat to our republic" and a "coward" and that "he tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him." In response, Donald Trump texted on his Trump Social platform that "Dick Cheney is an irrelevantRINO, along with his daughter".[214][215]
At an Arizona rally on November 1, 2024, Trump called Cheney a "war hawk" and said "Let's put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her. OK? Let's see how she feels about it, you know when the guns are trained on her face. They're all war hawks when they're sitting in Washington in a nice building saying, 'Oh, gee, well let's send 10,000 troops right into the mouth of the enemy.'" Cheney responded by saying, "This is how dictators destroy free nations. They threaten those who speak against them with death."[216][217] Following Trump's remarks,Kris Mayes, theArizona Attorney General, launched an investigation into whether Trump's statement qualified as a prosecutabledeath threat under Arizona law.[218]
Kamala Harris' campaign welcomed Cheney's support, a move criticized byIlhan Omar,The Nation, andNewsweek as ineffective due to her bipartisan unpopularity.[219][220][221][222]
Cheney was selected for the inaugural 2021Forbes 50 Over 50, a list of notable entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists, and creators older than age 50.[223] She was also included in the 2021Time 100,Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.[224]
On April 22, 2022, theJohn F. Kennedy Library Foundation named Cheney aProfile in Courage Award recipient for "defending democracy". The foundation said that Cheney had been a "consistent and courageous voice in defense of democracy" and that she had "refused to take the politically expedient course that most of her party embraced."[225] The award was presented in person on May 22.[226]
Cheney was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws fromDartmouth College on June 9, 2024.[227]
On January 2, 2025, Cheney was awarded thePresidential Citizens Medal by President Joe Biden, who described Cheney and fellow recipientBennie Thompson as "elected officials who served in difficult times with honor, decency, and ensure our democracy delivers".[134][135][136]
She was nominated for the 2025Nobel Peace Prize for "her defense of freedom and democracy," along with the other members of theJanuary 6th Committee.[228]
Cheney is aUnited Methodist.[229] She is married toPhilip Perry, apartner atLatham & Watkins. They were married in Wyoming in 1993. They have five children.[230] In 2012, Cheney moved to Wyoming.[231]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Liz Cheney | 35,043 | 39.8 | |
| Republican | Leland Christensen | 19,330 | 21.9 | |
| Republican | Tim Stubson | 15,524 | 17.6 | |
| Republican | Darin Smith | 13,381 | 15.2 | |
| Republican | Mike Konsmo | 1,363 | 1.6 | |
| Republican | Jason Adam Senteney | 976 | 1.1 | |
| Republican | Rex Rammell | 890 | 1.0 | |
| Republican | Paul Paad | 886 | 1.0 | |
| Republican | Heath Beaudry | 534 | 0.6 | |
| Write-in | 155 | 0.2 | ||
| Total votes | 88,082 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Liz Cheney | 156,176 | 62.0 | |
| Democratic | Ryan Greene | 75,466 | 30.0 | |
| Constitution | Daniel Clyde Cummings | 10,362 | 4.1 | |
| Libertarian | Lawrence Gerard Struempf | 9,033 | 3.6 | |
| Write-in | 739 | 0.3 | ||
| Total votes | 251,776 | 100 | ||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Liz Cheney (incumbent) | 75,183 | 67.7 | |
| Republican | Rod Miller | 22,045 | 19.9 | |
| Republican | Blake E Stanley | 13,307 | 12.0 | |
| Write-in | 478 | 0.4 | ||
| Total votes | 111,013 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Liz Cheney (incumbent) | 127,963 | 63.6 | |
| Democratic | Greg Hunter | 59,903 | 29.8 | |
| Libertarian | Richard Brubaker | 6,918 | 3.4 | |
| Constitution | Daniel Clyde Cummings | 6,070 | 3.0 | |
| Write-in | 391 | 0.2 | ||
| Total votes | 201,245 | 100 | ||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Liz Cheney (incumbent) | 78,870 | 73.5 | |
| Republican | Blake Stanley | 28,039 | 26.1 | |
| Write-in | 454 | 0.4 | ||
| Total votes | 107,363 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Liz Cheney (incumbent) | 185,732 | 68.6 | |
| Democratic | Lynnette Grey Bull | 66,576 | 24.6 | |
| Libertarian | Richard Brubaker | 10,154 | 3.7 | |
| Constitution | Jeff Haggit | 7,905 | 2.9 | |
| Write-in | 525 | 0.2 | ||
| Total votes | 270,892 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Harriet Hageman | 113,079 | 66.3 | |
| Republican | Liz Cheney (incumbent) | 49,339 | 28.9 | |
| Republican | Anthony Bouchard | 4,508 | 2.6 | |
| Republican | Denton Knapp | 2,258 | 1.3 | |
| Republican | Robyn M. Belinskey | 1,306 | 0.8 | |
| Write-in | 175 | 0.1 | ||
| Total votes | 170,665 | 100 | ||
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Washington — Former President Donald Trump attacked former Rep. Liz Cheney, one of his most ardent critics, on Thursday as a "war hawk" and suggested she be sent into the line of fire.
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWyoming's at-large congressional district 2017–2023 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Vice Chair of theHouse January 6 Committee 2021–2023 | Position abolished |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chair of the House Republican Conference 2019–2021 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
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| Territorial (1869–1890) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Oneat-large seat (1890–present) | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
