McCarthy says GOP members are concerned about Cheney’s leadership

Washington — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy expressed frustration with House Republican Conference Chair Liz Cheney on Tuesday, saying he has heard from some GOP representatives who are concerned Cheney can’t “carry out the message” ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. 

McCarthy’s comments are a sign of the escalating tension between the two, as Cheney has continued to criticize former President Donald Trump and his role in the January 6 attack on the Capitol while McCarthy has sought to downplay the event.

Cheney was one of 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach Mr. Trump on a charge of incitement of insurrection in January. She fended off an effort by some conservatives to oust her from her leadership position in early February, with support from McCarthy. But McCarthy said in an interview with “Fox & Friends” on Tuesday that more Republican members were losing confidence in Cheney’s ability to lead.

“There’s no concern about how she voted on impeachment. That decision has been made,” McCarthy said. “I have heard from members concerned about her ability to carry out the job as conference chair, to carry out the message.”

Cheney has repeatedly pushed back against Mr. Trump’s false claim that the election was stolen. Cheney said Monday that Republicans could not accept the “poison” of this claim or “whitewash” the January 6 attack by Mr. Trump’s supporters, CNN reported.

“We can’t embrace the notion the election is stolen. It’s a poison in the bloodstream of our democracy,” Cheney said in remarks at a conference in Georgia. “We can’t whitewash what happened on January 6 or perpetuate Trump’s big lie. It is a threat to democracy. What he did on January 6 is a line that cannot be crossed.”

McCarthy was critical of Mr. Trump in the immediate aftermath of the attack on January 6, saying on January 13 that the former president bore “responsibility” for the incident and arguing in favor of censuring him. But McCarthy has since backtracked his comments and sought to tie himself closer to Mr. Trump. Republicans have the chance to retake the House in 2022, with McCarthy in line to become speaker. As Mr. Trump is still very popular among GOP voters, some congressional Republicans have continued to defend the president and his falsehoods about the election to ensure their support.

“We all need to be working as one if we’re able to win the majority. Remember, majorities are not given, they are earned. And that’s about the message about going forward,” McCarthy said on Tuesday morning.

Cheney has broken with McCarthy several times in recent months over Mr. Trump’s role in the future of the Republican Party. She has disagreed with him about the scope of a commission to investigate the attack on the Capitol, arguing that it should be tightly focused on the events of January 6 instead of also looking at demonstrations over the summer protesting police brutality. Cheney also said at the House Republican policy conference last week that McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are the leaders of the party, not Mr. Trump.