Former Vice President Dick Cheney expressed his disappointment with many members of the Republican Party on Thursday for their failure to recognize the grave nature of the attack on the U.S. Capitol one year ago.
Cheney joined his daughter, U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, at the Capitol on Thursday to commemorate the anniversary of the Capitol riot, which led to the deaths of five people. They were the only two members of the Republican Party who were on the House floor during the commemoration of the January 6 riots.
“The importance of Jan. 6 as an historic event cannot be overstated,” the elder Cheney said on Thursday. “I was honored and proud to join my daughter on the House floor to recognize this anniversary, to commend the heroic actions of law enforcement of that day and reaffirm our dedication to the Constitution.
“I am deeply disappointed at the failure of many members of my party to recognize the grave nature of the Jan. 6 attacks and the ongoing threat to our nation,” the former vice president continued.
He also told an ABC News reporter that he was disappointed that there was not better leadership in the Republican Party to restore the Constitution, noting that his daughter was an exception.
“Well, it’s not a leadership that resembles any of the folks that I knew when I was here for 10 years, dramatically,” he said. “I’m deeply disappointed we don’t have better leadership in the Republican Party to restore the Constitution.”
As the Cheneys were leaving the floor, Liz told reporters that the future of the country was at stake.
“There are moments when we all have to come together in order to defend the Constitution,” she said.
When the elder Cheney was asked about the treatment that the congresswoman has received, he said, “My daughter can take care of herself.”
Dick Cheney served as Wyoming’s lone U.S. representative from 1979 to 1989.
Liz Cheney is co-chair of the committee investigating the day’s events and those leading up to it and is one of only two Republicans serving on the committee.
She was roundly criticized by Republican Party members, both in Wyoming and nationally, for her decision to vote for the impeachment of former President Donald Trump last year following the events of the Capitol riot, which she and other legislators claim he incited.
Before the 2021 impeachment vote, Liz Cheney voted in support of Trump’s policies more than 90% of the time, more than some of her Republican detractors, including U.S. Sen. Rand Paul and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz.