House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) slammed Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) on Monday for not being a team player after she continued to divide the Republican Party by attacking former President Donald Trump.
McCarthy’s comments come after Cheney continued to take veiled shots at the former president by suggesting that he was not a leader in the Republican Party and said in an interview with the New York Post this week that she was not ruling out running for president, which was met with widespread mockery.
“There’s a responsibility, if you’re gonna be in leadership, leaders eat last,” McCarthy said. “And when leaders try to go out, and not work as one team, it creates difficulties.”
McCarthy said that he has privately advised Cheney to tone down her attacks that are causing division in the party, but when asked by a reporter whether Cheney was taking the advice, responded: “You be the judge.”
When asked earlier this year at a Republican Congressional press conference if she thought Trump should be speaking at CPAC, Cheney acknowledged that it was CPAC’s decision, but added: “I’ve been clear in my views about President Trump and the extent to which following January 6th, I don’t believe that he should be playing a role in the future of the party or the country.”
The Daily Wire reported at the time:
As she made the remarks, a look of discomfort could be seen on McCarthy’s face and, at the very end of her remarks, House Minority Whip Steve Scalise could be seen briefly shaking his head. [House Minority Leader Kevin] McCarthy immediately concluded the press conference following Cheney’s remarks, saying, “On that high note, thank you very much.”
Cheney’s remarks contradicting McCarthy’s statement come after McCarthy recently backed Cheney while other Republican lawmakers sought to remove her from a leadership position in the Republican Party following her vote to impeach Trump over the events that unfolded on January 6.
During her interview on Monday with the New York Post, Cheney said, “I’m not ruling anything in or out” regarding a possible run for president in 2024.
“I think we have a huge number of interesting candidates, but I think that we’re going to be in a good position to be able to take the White House,” Cheney said. “I do think that some of our candidates who led the charge, particularly the senators who led the unconstitutional charge, not to certify the election, you know, in my view that’s disqualifying.”
Trump Jr. responded to the news story by writing on Twitter: “I can only assume this means that Lincoln Project Liz is planning a primary challenge to Joe Biden for the Dem nomination because God knows she’d be lucky to break 5% running in the 2024 Republican primary.”
Boris Epshsteyn, a top Trump adviser, wrote: “Having just been censured by her home state GOP and having 10 percent approval rating with Republicans in Wyoming is a GREAT start!”
Another Trump adviser, Jason Miller, responded to the news by saying that Cheney was giving herself an “out” because he thinks that she has “received new polling” showing that she may lose her primary race.