Democrats promote Cheney on riot panel
Some Republicans seek removal of 2 reps from House GOP conference
WASHINGTON – House Democrats promoted Republican Rep. Liz Cheney to vice chairwoman of a committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, placing her in a leadership spot on the panel as some Republicans are threatening to oust her from the GOP conference for participating.
Cheney, a fierce critic of former President Donald Trump, has remained defiant amid the criticism from her own party, insisting that Congress must probe the Capitol attack, in which hundreds of Trump’s supporters violently pushed past police, broke into the building and interrupted the certification of Joe Biden’s presidential election victory.
“We owe it to the American people to investigate everything that led up to, and transpired on, January 6th,” Cheney, R-wyo., said in a statement as Democrats announced her promotion on Thursday. “We will not be deterred by threats or attempted obstruction and we will not rest until our task is complete.”
Cheney’s appointment as vice chairwoman comes amid an effort by some Republicans to oust Cheney and Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois from the GOP conference because they accepted their appointments to the panel from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. A draft letter by Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs to Republican Leader Kevin Mccarthy obtained by The Associated Press calls Cheney and Kinzinger “two spies for the Democrats” whom Republicans cannot trust to attend their private meetings.
Biggs, chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, is calling on the conference to change its rules to state that any Republican who accepts a committee assignment or serves on a committee without a recommendation from GOP leadership “shall immediately cease to be a Member of the Conference.” Mccarthy’s office did not respond to a request for comment about Biggs’ proposal.