White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is calling the decision to strip Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) of her leadership position “disturbing.”
During a press briefing on Wednesday, Psaki weighed in on House Republicans’ decision to oust Cheney from her leadership role. She began by noting that “more than 80 judges across the country threw out lawsuits attempting to overturn the election.”
“It’s disturbing to see any leader, regardless of party, being attacked for simply speaking the truth,” she said.
Psaki continued:
“And as the president said last week, it’s hard to understand. But, our belief, his belief is that the American people will have to make their own decisions about whether the reaction by the people they elected to represent them should be embracing and elevating conspiracies and attacks on our democracy, or whether it should be standing up for ideals that have historically been owned by both Democrats and Republicans.”
Watch the video below:
Press sec. Psaki on Rep. Liz Cheney being ousted from House GOP: "It's disturbing to see any leader, regardless of party, being attacked for simply speaking the truth." https://t.co/FCLR9rZjMS pic.twitter.com/fK9bhM0ghH
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) May 12, 2021
Her comments come hours after House Republicans voted to remove Cheney from her role as House Republican Conference chair, as IJR reported.
After the vote, the Wyoming Congresswoman said she will “do everything I can to ensure that the former president never again gets anywhere near the Oval Office.”
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) claimed that Cheney “forfeited her ability to be our spokesperson” because “she has been looking backwards while repeatedly and unhelpfully engaging in personal attacks and finger-wagging towards President Trump rather than leading the conference forward with a unifying message.”
However, in a speech before the vote to oust her from leadership, Cheney claimed, “We face a threat America has never seen before. A former president who provoked a violent attack on this Capitol in an effort to steal the election has resumed his aggressive effort to convince Americans that the election was stolen from him.”
She went on to say that former President Donald Trump “risks inciting further violence.”
Finally, she signaled she would not stop speaking out about Trump’s unfounded claims, “Remaining silent and ignoring the lie emboldens the liar. I will not participate in that. I will not sit back and watch in silence while others lead our party down a path that abandons the rule of law and joins the former president’s crusade to undermine our democracy.”