Cheney: Wrong War, Wrong Time, Wrong Tactics

 

Wrong War. Wrong Time. Wrong Tactics. I think that’s emblazoned on the Cheney Family Coat of Arms. No one needs more evidence of that than the drama that has just played out in the House GOP Conference. But I come not to praise Caesar, but to bury her.

Liz Cheney may be a book-smart woman. But she and her supporters have been awfully stupid since January. Maybe that comes with believing that power is your birthright and not something to be earned from the people you are supposed to represent. Liz Perry – she’s been Mrs. Philip Perry for 28 years now – clings to her father’s name like a hereditary title. It is the source of her power. She was made the Chair of the House Republican Conference in January 2019 despite the fact that she had only been in the House for a single term. In her four years in the House, she has never proposed legislation that had been signed into law. So, the Cheney name is all she really has.

But who needs personal accomplishments? She went straight from college into a job at the State Department. (Who doesn’t?) Then came law school and a high-profile lobbying job with the “consulting” firm led by Richard Armitage. With her father’s election as Vice President, it was back to State. In other words, she took all the obvious career paths that most of her Wyoming constituents take.

And now, she has become a “hero” to the Left and the disgruntled establishment for fighting an internecine war with her party and her constituency. Because of her name recognition, she is one of those politicians who has never really had to engage in retail politics – climbing the greasy pole from local office to local office, working your way to state government, before trying the national stage – and all while building coalitions and creating political capital. Like so many others before her, the smartest person in the room also becomes the dumbest.

What Liz and her supporters cannot seem to come to grips with (or by nature they are oblivious to) are these basic facts:

  1. You may win future elections without Donald Trump but you will not win them without his supporters. His constituents are your constituents. A mainstay argument of the anti-Trump crowd is the former President’s “underperformance” compared to the GOP House and Senate candidates. Even if that’s true, the proportion of voters that supported both greatly outweighs the difference. And for someone like Cheney, she underperformed Trump by some 8,000 votes.
  2. Whether you’re a politician or a pundit, the near-universal response to the allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 election has been stupid. Not just stupid, but mind-numbing levels of stupid. A working democracy depends upon a mountain of faith that the process is on the up-and-up. If 40 percent of the American public believes the 2020 elections were fraudulent, that is not a Donald Trump problem. That is an existential problem for the Republic and therefore it is your problem. The proper response should have been, “We know that there are doubts and we are going to do everything we can to allay these fears.” Instead we got, “You people are stupid. Shut the hell* up and go away.” Unfortunately, that toothpaste can’t go back in the tube. Donald Trump may fade away but the result of the glee so many take in attacking his supporters will not.
  3. We all know the phrase, “The Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations.” It’s mainly used as an argument on race relations and the “dumbing down” of standards. But it applies everywhere. How you treat people will eventually alter their trajectory. If you constantly accuse someone falsely of bad conduct, if you prosecute them for your own political gain, they will eventually take the attitude that they will live down to the accusations. I mean, if you’re going to do the time, why not actually do the crime? And so it is with January 6. There were six deaths surrounding the events of that day, five of them medically induced. The only unnatural death was that of Ashley Babbitt at the hands of a Capitol Hill Police officer. However, if the politicians and the pundits continue their accusations of “armed insurrection,” they will eventually get one. They may see it as an opportunity to finally “deal” with Trump supporters, but that is a beast that, once unleashed, may not be as easy to control as they think. The second American Civil War would not look like the first one. Forget Gettysburg, think Beirut. And Northern Ireland. And Syria. And this crusade SecDef Austin is waging against his own troops is the epitome of stupid. When the shooting starts, loyalty is not going to be decided by a uniform.

Originally, Liz Cheney moved to Wyoming to claim her hereditary title in the US Senate. Her plan in 2014 was to stab another Republican – incumbent Senator Mike Enzi – in the back. (Anyone sense a pattern here?) When it became obvious that she on course for an embarrassing spanking in the primary she backed off and settled for the state’s at-large House seat two years later. Now, she is reduced to being one ineffectual vote among the minority. Maybe Joe Biden will reward her loyalty with a return trip to the State Department as US Ambassador to Iraq.

*Not the word I wanted to use.

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  1. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    EJHill: Liz Perry – she’s been been Mrs. Philip Perry for 28 years now – clings to father’s name like a hereditary title.

    Women in politics seem to enjoy using whatever surname they want to get them the best advantage. I remember Loretta Brixey reverted to Sanchez to run against B-1 Bob Dornan. I’m not fully knowledgeable about my local New Mexico politics, but have heard that Governor Michelle Grisham goes by Michelle Lujan Grisham to remind voters what family she hails from.

    • #1
  2. Bryan G. Stephens Thatcher
    Bryan G. Stephens
    @BryanGStephens

    Well said

    • #2
  3. Franz Drumlin Inactive
    Franz Drumlin
    @FranzDrumlin

    EJHill: You may win future elections without Donald Trump but you will not win them without his supporters.

    This contention will be put to the test in the 2024 primaries. If Donald Trump decides to make another run he will almost certainly regard any primary challenger as being ‘disloyal’ with belittling nicknames sure to follow. This may be why Nikki Haley recently said that if Trump runs, she won’t. Will Trump supporters be open to a Tom Cotton or Ron DeSantis? 

    • #3
  4. MWD B612 "Dawg" Member
    MWD B612 "Dawg"
    @danok1

    EJHill: The second American Civil War would not look like the first one. Forget Gettysburg, think Beirut. And Northern Ireland. And Syria.

    And Yugoslavia/Kosovo.

    TBH, I wasn’t aware of Cheney’s sparse electoral background. All the more reason to remove her from leadership. Good post EJ.

    • #4
  5. Franco Member
    Franco
    @Franco

    Franz Drumlin (View Comment):

    EJHill: You may win future elections without Donald Trump but you will not win them without his supporters.

    This contention will be put to the test in the 2024 primaries. If Donald Trump decides to make another run he will almost certainly regard any primary challenger as being ‘disloyal’ with belittling nicknames sure to follow. This may be why Nikki Haley recently said that if Trump runs, she won’t. Will Trump supporters be open to a Tom Cotton or Ron DeSantis?

    If it is the reason (that she would get a nickname) Nikki doesn’t run, she’s got no place in politics at all. Or was it just sloppy writing?

    • #5
  6. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Liz Cheney, following the vote that removed her from a House leadership role, is quoted as saying she will do all in her power to make sure Donald Trump does not again occupy the Oval Office. My guess is that, if and when that possibility becomes part of political campaigning, Liz Cheney will fulfill that promise as a private citizen.

    • #6
  7. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    Franz Drumlin (View Comment):

    EJHill: You may win future elections without Donald Trump but you will not win them without his supporters.

    This contention will be put to the test in the 2024 primaries. If Donald Trump decides to make another run he will almost certainly regard any primary challenger as being ‘disloyal’ with belittling nicknames sure to follow. This may be why Nikki Haley recently said that if Trump runs, she won’t. Will Trump supporters be open to a Tom Cotton or Ron DeSantis?

    I hear a lot of support for DeSantis. He has a lot of what people like in Trump, e.g., a willingness to fight the media and put forth conservative proposals, and negates some of Trump’s negatives, e.g., is youthful and understands the government executive branch. I haven’t seen pictures of her, but a podcaster mentioned that DeSantis’ wife is also hot. The media arm of the Democrat Party sees him as a threat as well and has been working hard during the last year to tear him down.

    • #7
  8. EJHill Podcaster
    EJHill
    @EJHill

    Franz Drumlin: This contention will be put to the test in the 2024 primaries.

    Oh, way before that. And it’s not a contention, just math. Not even the detractors of the “stolen” election theory are claiming that Donald Trump did not garner more votes than any Republican nominee in history. Now, Trump may not be on the ballot in 2022 but that cuts both ways. Many of the people who showed up primarily to vote against Trump may not show up, either. 

    • #8
  9. EJHill Podcaster
    EJHill
    @EJHill

    Bob Thompson: My guess is that, if and when that possibility becomes part of political campaigning, Liz Cheney will fulfill that promise as a private citizen.

    My guess is that she doesn’t have the political capital she thinks she has. 

    • #9
  10. Franco Member
    Franco
    @Franco

    EJHill (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson: My guess is that, if and when that possibility becomes part of political campaigning, Liz Cheney will fulfill that promise as a private citizen.

    My guess is that she doesn’t have the political capital she thinks she has.

    And as though she and her cronies in Intel and the Bush/Cheney network weren’t doing that all along. Bu bye!

    • #10
  11. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    EJHill: If 40% of the American public believe the 2020 elections were fraudulent, that is not a Donald Trump problem. That is an existential problem for the Republic and therefore it is your problem.

    Bingo.

    • #11
  12. Columbo Inactive
    Columbo
    @Columbo

    Indeed. Biden and his socialist puppet-masters are blowing up the country, the Constitution and the world. And Liz is so dumb she wants to discuss Donald Trump.  TDS as bad as anyone at the Bul*****.

    • #12
  13. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Does someone like Governor DeSantis in the Presidential race change things for a Liz Cheney and her ilk since it’s not Trump or do they hold the same position?

    • #13
  14. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

     

    The WSJ headline writers are having a hard time dealing with it. Here is their front-page blurb:

    House Republicans Oust Liz Cheney from Leadership for Defying Trump: Cheney had clashed publicly with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other senior Republicans by pushing back on former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims that the 2020 election had been stolen from him.

    I haven’t checked the article itself. Sometimes the articles are more professional or at least a little more artful in the way they express their partisanship. 

    • #14
  15. Franz Drumlin Inactive
    Franz Drumlin
    @FranzDrumlin

    Franco (View Comment):
    If it is the reason (that she would get a nickname) Nikki doesn’t run, she’s got no place in politics at all.

    No one doubts Ms. Haley’s ability to give as good as she gets. But I fear the harder she swings back the more Trump’s supporters will cheer on their hero. Ted Cruz fought back against Trump in 2016 even to the point of being booed at the Republican Convention and now he is very well-behaved.

    • #15
  16. Franco Member
    Franco
    @Franco

    Columbo (View Comment):

    Indeed. Biden and his socialist puppet-masters are blowing up the country, the Constitution and the world. And Liz is so dumb she wants to discuss Donald Trump. TDS as bad as anyone at the Bul*****.

    She’s not unlike many elected Republicans. They don’t like fighting with Democrats. They like to complain, but not actual opposition or anything unsavory….

    She’s gone soon enough. Let’s not forget the others. Let the ‘purge’ begin!

    • #16
  17. DrewInTherapy Member
    DrewInTherapy
    @DrewInWisconsin

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):

    Does someone like Governor DeSantis in the Presidential race change things for a Liz Cheney and her ilk since it’s not Trump or do they hold the same position?

    The Trump-haters have turned their attention to DeSantis, so expect him to get largely the same treatment.

    • #17
  18. Columbo Inactive
    Columbo
    @Columbo

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

     

    The WSJ headline writers are having a hard time dealing with it. Here is their front-page blurb:

    House Republicans Oust Liz Cheney from Leadership for Defying Trump: Cheney had clashed publicly with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other senior Republicans by pushing back on former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims that the 2020 election had been stolen from him.

    I haven’t checked the article itself. Sometimes the articles are more professional or at least a little more artful in the way they express their partisanship.

    Yeah, Imagine reading this blurb:

    House Democrats Oust Adam Schiff from Leadership for Defying Biden: Schiff had clashed publicly with House Speaker  Nancy Pelosi and other senior Democrats by pushing back on President Joe Biden’s baseless claims that the border is not a crisis situation.

    There would be nary a drop of ink spilled on such a story, and it is likely that the gOp would have said nothing about it. But …..

    TRRRRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMPPPPPPPPP!

    • #18
  19. Gary Robbins Member
    Gary Robbins
    @GaryRobbins

    I disagree.  Liz Cheney is right.  Here is Liz Cheney’s speech on the floor of the house yesterday.

    • #19
  20. Franco Member
    Franco
    @Franco

    Franz Drumlin (View Comment):

    Franco (View Comment):
    If it is the reason (that she would get a nickname) Nikki doesn’t run, she’s got no place in politics at all.

    No one doubts Ms. Haley’s ability to give as good as she gets. But I fear the harder she swings back the more Trump’s supporters will cheer on their hero. Ted Cruz fought back against Trump in 2016 even to the point of being booed at the Republican Convention and now he is very well-behaved.

    Your misreading of Trump and the majority of his supporters is unfortunate.

    Cruz is admirable for putting the pettiness aside and focusing on the agenda. It’s obvious he believes in higher concepts. 
    Notice that Trump rarely possibly never, attacked any Republican unless they attacked him first once he was elected.

    The inability- perhaps cultivated inability – to see the Trump phenomenon as anything other than hero-worship reveals quite a lot about some people’s priorities. Like Liz Cheney for one.

    • #20
  21. Gary Robbins Member
    Gary Robbins
    @GaryRobbins

    Here is Liz Cheney’s news conference this morning after the voice vote.

    • #21
  22. DrewInTherapy Member
    DrewInTherapy
    @DrewInWisconsin

    Franz Drumlin (View Comment):

    Franco (View Comment):
    If it is the reason (that she would get a nickname) Nikki doesn’t run, she’s got no place in politics at all.

    No one doubts Ms. Haley’s ability to give as good as she gets. But I fear the harder she swings back the more Trump’s supporters will cheer on their hero. Ted Cruz fought back against Trump in 2016 even to the point of being booed at the Republican Convention and now he is very well-behaved.

    “Well-behaved” looks like slander. You’re treating him like a beaten and obedient cur.

    • #22
  23. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    DrewInTherapy (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):

    Does someone like Governor DeSantis in the Presidential race change things for a Liz Cheney and her ilk since it’s not Trump or do they hold the same position?

    The Trump-haters have turned their attention to DeSantis, so expect him to get largely the same treatment.

    I see @garyrobbins is with us so maybe we should get his views on this question.

    • #23
  24. Bryan G. Stephens Thatcher
    Bryan G. Stephens
    @BryanGStephens

    It astounds me that people on the right anywhere are willing to ignore the lies told about the riot on the 6th. We know for a fact that the officer who died, died later of natural causes, and yet, people on the right refused to acknowledge that. A woman was shot by a police officer and killed. We don’t know who killed her. Is that OK for Never Trumpers? Sure it is because they clearly think she had it coming. 

    Heck, I have yet to see any of the NTs on the right call out the FBI for saying the clear political attack on the Republicans at a baseball game was “Suicide by Cop”. Their outrage is always an only directed at Trump and Trump supporters. 

    No, this woman has baked her bed and is cooked. The leadership might even agree with her (I think they do), but she is against the majority of  the GOP primary voters, and despite what elite worshiping Never Trumpers think, they are the party. 

    • #24
  25. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Bryan G. Stephens (View Comment):
    A woman was shot by a police officer and killed. We don’t know who killed her.

    But leftist jurisdictions don’t hesitate to release the names and photos of officers who are white and have a black die in their custody.

    It’s clear from the video a murder took place, and maybe it will take a civil lawsuit by Babbit’s family to get the name of the murderer and make it public . . .

    • #25
  26. EJHill Podcaster
    EJHill
    @EJHill

    Gary Robbins: I disagree.  

    Shock. Which of the three major points of the piece do you disagree with, counselor? That you’re in such a substantial majority that you can win elections without Trump supporters? Or that being a bunch of arrogant asses is preferable to acknowledging and assuaging doubt? Or that people will not eventually live down to your opinion of them?

    Posting Mrs. Perry’s remarks is not an argument or a coherent rebuttal. 

    • #26
  27. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Gary Robbins (View Comment):

    Here is Liz Cheney’s news conference this morning after the voice vote.

    Boo hoo . . .

    • #27
  28. CACrabtree Coolidge
    CACrabtree
    @CACrabtree

    Great Post. Interesting of photo of Cheney; almost like Carnac the Magnificent.

    Don’t know if we have any Ricochet folks in Wyoming but I’d be interested to know if she stands a chance of being primaried.  The Cheney name has gotten her to where she is today but I wonder if it has any further currency back home.

    • #28
  29. Columbo Inactive
    Columbo
    @Columbo

    Franco (View Comment):

    Columbo (View Comment):

    Indeed. Biden and his socialist puppet-masters are blowing up the country, the Constitution and the world. And Liz is so dumb she wants to discuss Donald Trump. TDS as bad as anyone at the Bul*****.

    She’s not unlike many elected Republicans. They don’t like fighting with Democrats. They like to complain, but not actual opposition or anything unsavory….

    She’s gone soon enough. Let’s not forget the others. Let the ‘purge’ begin!

    RINOs are Lying Useless Idiots. All.

    • #29
  30. Columbo Inactive
    Columbo
    @Columbo

    Gary Robbins (View Comment):

    Here is Liz Cheney’s news conference this morning after the voice vote.

    • #30
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