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Columnist Dave Simpson writes, “Honor Liz? What better way for Biden to moon the Republicans?”
If you ever doubted the existence of the “Deep State,” you should have been watching Thursday as Liz Cheney – polling-booth poison here in Wyoming – received the Presidential Citizenship Medal in Washington.
She got a standing ovation from a gathering of high-power attendees, clearly dominated by swamp dwellers.
It was another instance of outgoing President Joe Biden thumbing his nose at the incoming Republican administration, like selling off steel for the border wall at pennies on the dollar, and authorizing some federal employees to keep working from home until (I am not kidding) 2029.
Honor Liz? What better way for Biden to moon the Republicans?
Those who gave Liz the ovation apparently felt deep appreciation for her role as lead Trump attack dog on the Select Committee on January 6. The White House released a statement saying that the award recognizes “exemplary deeds of service for their country and fellow citizens.”
I'm pretty sure it wasn't to honor her over 90-percent voting support of Trump as our representative. But that was before she decided Trump was Beelzebub, and became the clearest example yet of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Suddenly she was in direct opposition to the the clearly-held beliefs of the vast majority of her constituents.
And last year she poured salt in the wound, campaigning for Kamala Harris.
Unlike in Washington, Cheney is now vastly unpopular in Wyoming, for the aggressive stance she took against Trump, who in 2020 won almost 70 percent of the vote here, most in the nation, and led the nation again last November. Talk about being out of step with your constituents.
As a result, she was soundly defeated for re-election in 2022 by Harriett Hageman – an enthusiastic Trump supporter – who received 66 percent of the vote.
Liz can't stand Trump. In August of 2022 she said, “I will do whatever it takes to keep Trump from the Oval Office.” And in March of last year she announced formation of a political action committee to oppose Trump, calling it “The Great Task,” after a line in a speech by Abraham Lincoln.
Her Great Task came up puny though, as Trump won both the popular and electoral votes, convincingly, in November. He'll soon be back in that Oval Office, despite Liz's best efforts.
The professional courtesy usually extended to fellow members of the delegation is now a thing of the past. Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso criticized the award, citing Cheney's “partisanship and divisiveness.” And Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis called the medal a reward for Cheney's “vendetta against Donald Trump.”
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said she tampered with a witness during the January 6 Committee's deliberations, and called for an investigation of “potential criminal witness tampering.”
Meanwhile, Cheney has been mentioned as a possible recipient of a presidential pardon for her role on that committee, as short-timer Biden passes out pardons like gum drops. Hard to imagine, isn't it, that our former representative could receive the second highest citizenship award, and a presidential pardon (like Hunter), in the same month.
Who'd a thunk it? Especially those of us who had been voting for anyone named Cheney for years.
I've got a framed letter from Dick Cheney hanging on the wall, thanking me for sending him a print of a photo I took of him when I was editor of the Rawlins Times in 1979. He was campaigning for office, driving himself around the state (no entourage) in a van, and saving money on photos for his newsletter. Seemed like a frugal guy, and I voted for him for years.
A couple Wyoming natives I know called Liz “a carpetbagger” because she grew up outside Washington. I thought that was unfair, because most of us grew up where our dads worked. But they saw something they didn't like in Liz early on, and the way things worked out, I guess they were right.
Liz has done real damage to the considerable Cheney legacy here in Wyoming. But she's still popular in Washington, where folks think differently.
The Deep State loves her, as evidenced by that standing ovation.
But, here in Wyoming, we can thank our stars that she didn't keep Trump from returning to the Oval Office. Her vendetta was probably the most epic fail of 2024.
Thank goodness.
Dave Simpson can be reached at: DaveSimpson145@hotmail.com
