WASHINGTON (AP) — The No. 2 House Republican is publicly calling for the removal of Rep. Liz Cheney as the party's third-ranking leader in the chamber. Rep. Steve Scalise, the House GOP whip, issued a statement early Wednesday backing Rep. Elise Stefanik for the post. It’s the first public statement from Republican leadership that Cheney should be ousted. Cheney, R-Wyo., has provoked Republican ire for repeatedly trading barbs with former President Donald Trump, blasting Trump’s false claim the 2020 presidential election was stolen. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday that rank-and-file Republicans were concerned about Cheney’s “ability to carry out her job” as a result of her public comments about Trump
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
FILE - In this Dec. 17, 2019 file photo, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., speaks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington. A deepening divide among Republicans over President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the election runs prominently through Wyoming, the state that delivered Trump's widest prevailing margin by far. Eleven Republican senators saying they will not be voting Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, to confirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory include Wyoming's newly sworn in Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Cheyenne-area rancher and former congresswoman. Vocal opponents of any such move include Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, leader of GOP messaging in the House as its third-ranking Republican (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
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