The second-highest ranking Republican in the U.S. House has officially come out in support of ousting U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney from her seat as House Conference chair.
U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Lousiana, confirmed this week that he is now backing Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-New York, for the position, according to the Associated Press. Former president Donald Trump is also expected to endorse Stefanik for the job.
“House Republicans need to be solely focused on taking back the House in 2022 and fighting against Speaker Pelosi and President Biden’s radical socialist agenda, and Elise Stefanik is strongly committed to doing that, which is why Whip Scalise has pledged to support her for Conference Chair,” said Scalise’s spokeswoman Lauren Fine.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-California, said this week that some Republicans were concerned about Cheney’s “ability to carry out her job” as a result of her public comments about Trump, the AP also reported.
In a statement Monday morning, Trump claimed that the 2020 presidential election would henceforth be known as “the BIG LIE,” referring to his thoughts that he actually won the presidency, but it was rigged against him from the start.
Cheney has challenged these claims from the president several times and took to social media again this week to repeat her thoughts.
“The 2020 presidential election was not stolen. Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system,” she wrote on Twitter Monday.
Last month, the New York Times Magazine wrote a detailed report about the backlash Cheney has received for standing against the former president and her vote to impeach him following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
