House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy opposes attempts by some Republicans to oust Rep. Liz Cheney from the conference’s leadership as punishment for voting to impeach President Trump.
Some Republicans are demanding that Cheney, the conference chairwoman, relinquish her leadership post or that a vote be scheduled to replace her, if necessary, to remove her. But a McCarthy spokesman told the Washington Examiner on Thursday that the minority leader does not support any effort to replace the Wyoming congresswoman as the No. 3 ranking House Republican. McCarthy, a California Republican, is the first elected House GOP leader to come to Cheney’s defense.
Cheney, unrepentant for her vote, has said made clear that she will not step aside. In an interview with reporters in Wyoming, she said that she was focused on helping Republicans win the House majority in 2022. “I’m laying out a positive agenda for the future, and it’ll be one that will allow us to get the majority back in two years. That’s what I’m focused on, and that’s what I look forward to our conference being able to accomplish,” Cheney said.
In inquiries, the rest of McCarthy’s leadership team either did not respond, declined to comment, or expressed neutrality.
“This is an issue we are going to handle within the House Republican Conference,” Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, the House GOP conference’s secretary, said in a statement.
Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, sidestepped the issue altogether. “The NRCC’s job is to take back the majority, elect Republicans to the House of Representatives, and hold the socialist Democrats accountable for their job-destroying agenda,” committee spokesman Michael McAdams said in a statement.
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana and House GOP Policy Committee Chairman Gary Palmer of Alabama did not respond to requests for comment.
It remains unclear whether there is sufficient Republican support to oust Cheney in the midterm elections. Some Republicans believe a groundswell to remove her could build over time as rank-and-file GOP voters express displeasure with Cheney and the nine other House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump. Others say her position is secure, especially now that she has McCarthy’s public support.
“I don’t think she in any danger whatsoever,” a House Republican who voted against impeachment said. “I think Kevin [McCarthy] will put an end to it.”
