What happened Tuesday at the Republican House conference meeting is no One of those times.
“Republicans in the House of Representatives attacked the Speaker of the Republican Party Conference of the House of Representatives, Liz Cheney of Wyoming, during a conference meeting on Tuesday morning for supporting Dr. Anthony Fauci and dividing with President Donald Trump on a variety of topics in the past few months, three sources in the CNN room said.
“Members such as representatives Jim Jordan from Ohio, Matt Gaetz from Florida, Thomas Massie from Kentucky, Chip Roy from Texas, Andy Biggs from Arizona, Scott Perry from Pennsylvania and Ralph Norman from South Carolina stepped in to file complaints against Cheney.”
A gang against a member of the Republican leadership not only occur. Particularly not when the group of members that persecuted Cheney includes some of the highest-profile members of the House of Liberty Chamber, which also functions as a bloc of President Donald Trump’s most loyal allies. Make no mistake: This was a concerted act to force Cheney to align himself with Trump, or at least know that he (and they) were watching her very, very closely.
You may still be wondering: And that? Trump does not like it when Republicans disagree with him. His congressional minions make sure the apostate is aware of the danger he is putting himself in. In another administration, maybe that’s a great story. In the Trump administration? That is only Tuesday.
Here’s why it matters: What went on behind closed doors Tuesday among Republicans is one of a series of small shocks in the upcoming fight over what the Republican Party would look like after Trump.
What Cheney is doing here is trying to preserve a version of the Republican Party that looks like the banner under which George W. Bush and his father, Dick Cheney, won two national elections in the past decade. Lower taxes and conservative judges, yes. But also a belief in moral rectitude, in conservative values, in respect for the Constitution and the rule of law.
If you don’t think that’s what Cheney is looking for, ask yourself what other possible motivation it might have. As has become clear, repeatedly, over the past three years, the easiest course of action for any Republican elected official seeking a pleasant and easy trip to reelection is to support Trump without question. Stay away from him and risk, at a minimum, public attacks on Trump and his allies (Utah Sen. Mitt Romney is the clearest example of that type of Republican) or, at most, watch Trump destroy his career (the former senator). Jeff from Arizona Flake).
The most politically “smart” thing Cheney could do is get along, as many of his Republican colleagues in the House and Senate have done. Make an occasional backstory by rolling your eyes at Trump’s verbal antics or Twitter obsession, but offer public support or silence.
All of this may backfire on you. And that the post-Trump party looks a lot like the current Trump party. And that, win or lose in November, Trump remains the incumbent head of the Republican Party for as long as he’s around. And that, because there is no obvious person to remove him from that role, the party continues as it is now: a cult of personality rather than a grouping of like-minded ideologues.
“Trump claims he won the election and was cheated outside the White House. No Republican does more than demonstrate that he contradicts him. Most Republicans actively affirm his claim.”
“Trump continues to tweet about politics every hour, and many elected Republicans take his orders to march on him. The party leadership continues to emanate from the person of Trump and is focused on complaints and culture war.”
“Trump is still shy about running in 2024, saying things like, ‘A lot of people say they would win in a cave-in if they ran again. We’ll see!’ And when he says this, no Republican-elect will speak out to oppose the idea. From this point of view, the Republican primary race of 2024 is just a shadow campaign in case Trump refuses to run again. “
What Cheney is betting is that in the wake of a convincing Trump defeat this fall, one that could also cost Republicans their majority in the Senate and place them even more in the House minority, there will be a trial within the Republican Party over what Trump (and Trumpism) meant, and a conclusion among a group of decent-sized Republicans, that another direction is needed.
To be clear: Trump would not go silently to that good night, even in this setting. He would fight like hell to keep control of the party. But Cheney is confident in the idea that there will be a large group of Republicans, activists, and elected officials, who will not only oppose him, but will stand firm when he (inevitably) attacks.
As I said: it is a great bet.
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