Former Vice President Dick Cheney said Thursday that he was “deeply disappointed” in the leadership of the Republican Party in Congress over its response to last year’s riot at the US Capitol.
Cheney, Wyoming’s lone member of the House of Representatives from 1979 to 1989, joined his daughter, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), on the House floor for a moment of silence to mark the anniversary of the deadly violence. They were the only Republicans seen to take part in the remembrance.
Moments earlier, the former secretary of defense under George H.W. Bush told ABC News that he had decided to come to the Capitol because the anniversary was “an important historical event. You can’t overestimate how important it is.”
“I’m deeply disappointed we don’t have better leadership in the Republican Party to restore the Constitution,” said Cheney, who added to reporters as he left the chamber: “It’s not a leadership that resembles any of the folks I knew when I was here for 10 years.”
Liz Cheney has faced sharp backlash for her ongoing criticism of former President Donald Trump and what she claims to be his role in inciting the Jan. 6 attack. She was voted out of her position as House GOP Conference chair in May of last year and was later tapped by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to serve as vice chair of the Jan. 6 select committee, further infuriating Trump allies.
“My daughter can take care of herself,” Dick Cheney told reporters when asked if he was disappointed in the way his daughter has been treated by her colleagues.
Liz Cheney suggested the decision by most of her fellow Republicans not to take part in the moment of silence was “a reflection of where our party is” and “very concerning.”
“I think the future of our country is at stake,” she said. “And there are moments when we all have to come together in order to defend the Constitution.”
The Wyoming Republican — who was one of 10 House GOPers to vote to impeach Trump on a charge of incitement of insurrection last year — reiterated her calls for the party to move away from the “cult of personality” surrounding the 45th president.
“Look, I think that a party who is enthralled to a cult of personality is a party that is dangerous for the country,” she said. “And I think that we’ve really got to get to a place where we’re focused on substance and on issues of policy.”
