Rep. Dan Crenshaw of Texas is praising Rep. Liz Cheney’s “backbone” and says the number three House Republican will continue to be “a much needed leader” in the chamber.
The Texas REpublican took to Twitter to back Cheney after Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and other strong supporters of President Trump urged Cheney to step down as House Republican Conference chair due to her support for Wednesday’s impeachment of the president.
TRUMP BECOMES FIRST PRESIDENT TO BE IMPEACHED A SECOND TIME
Crenshaw, who served as a U.S. Navy SEAL officer in the War in Afghanistan and who lost his right eye in combat, tweeted “Let’s get some truth on the record: @Liz_Cheney has a hell of a lot more backbone than most, & is a principled leader with a fierce intellect.”
And Crenshaw emphasized that Cheney, the highest ranking woman in the House Republican conference and the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, “will continue to be a much needed leader in the conference, with my full support. We can disagree without tearing each other apart.”
Cheney, who advocates for a hawkish and muscular U.S. role overseas, has been vocal critic of the Trump administration’s foreign policy. On the eve of Wednesday’s 232-197 vote by the House to impeach Trump for a second time, Cheney became the highest ranking Republican to say she’d support removing the president from office with just a week to go in his tenure in the White House.
MCCONNELL SAYS HE HASN’T MADE ‘FINAL DECISION’ ON HOW HE’LL VOTE IN TRUMP IMPEACHMENT TRIAL
Ten Republicans, including Cheney, ended up voting to impeach Trump for “incitement of insurrection” after a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 in a unsuccessful attempt to stop the certification of President-elect Joe Biden‘s electoral college win over the president.
“There has never been a greater betrayal by a president of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution,” Cheney wrote in a statement Tuesday night.
The statement sparked a reaction by a handful of Trump supporters in the chamber, who called for Cheney to step down from her leadership position. Jordan told reporters that he thought Cheney’s support to impeach the president was “totally wrong.”
JORDAN CALLS ON CHENEY TO RESIGN FROM HER HOUSE GOP LEADERSHIP POSITION
Fox News obtained a petition circulating in the House, calling for a “special meeting” of the Republican Conference “Calling on Congresswoman Liz Cheney to resign her position as Chair of the Republican Conference.”Â
But Cheney said on Wednesday – ahead of the impeachment vote – that she’s “not going anywhere.”Â
“This is a vote of conscience,” the congresswoman noted. “It’s one where there are different views in our conference.”Â
“But our nation is facing an unprecedented, since the Civil War, constitutional crisis. That’s what we need to be focused on. That’s where our efforts and attention need to be,” she added.
WHICH HOUSE REPUBLICANS VOTED TO IMPEACH TRUMP
Crenshaw was one of 197 Republicans who voted against impeaching Trump. Four House Republicans didn’t vote. All 222 House Democrats voted for impeachment.
Crenshaw explained in a tweet that “impeachment is not the answer. We all need to deescalate, lower the temperature, and move forward together as a country.”
But he also criticized Trump for his role in seemingly encouraging the attack on the Capital, saying “we can’t ignore the President’s behavior leading up to the violence in the Capitol last week. He bears enormous responsibility for it.”
Fox News James Levinson and Brooke Singman contributed to this report