House Majority Whip Steny Hoyer said Tuesday that the GOP’s imminent ouster of House Republican Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney “is going to be a black mark” on the party “for a long time to come.”
Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, joined other Democratic leaders who in recent days have denounced the GOP’s plan to replace Cheney, a Wyoming Republican who expresses public opposition to former President Donald Trump.
House Republicans will hold a vote Wednesday morning to determine Cheney’s fate. She’s poised to be replaced by Rep. Elise Stefanik, a New York Republican who continues to endorse Trump.
Republicans who oppose Cheney say she is increasingly at odds with the House GOP agenda and is diverting attention from efforts to regain the majority in 2022.
Hoyer and other Democrats see an opportunity to exploit internal GOP divisions.
“It’s going to be a sad week for the Republican Party and will demonstrate how deeply divided they are and, in my opinion, out of step with the overwhelming available one with the majority of the American people,” Hoyer said.
Cheney voted along with nine other Republicans to impeach Trump earlier this year on the charge that he incited the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Trump left office on Jan. 20, but Democrats continue to highlight his influence on the Republican Party and say it is evidence that the GOP is in a state of chaos.
Hoyer said most Republicans “have sold their soul to the company store, the company being Donald Trump enterprises, Donald Trump, Inc.,” and that their backing of the former president “is a testament to the depths to which the Republican Party frankly is falling — honoring a person of no character, no truth, and no substance.”
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Months after the election, Trump continues to insist that President Joe Biden’s win is not legitimate, and Hoyer told reporters the GOP is supporting Trump’s claim by refusing to denounce him and by ousting Cheney, who has publicly criticized Trump over his election claims.
“They will not accept the truth,” Hoyer said.
