Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), the No. 3 House Republican, shared her thoughts on the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) vote to censure Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), saying it “has every right” to take action against them.
During a press conference Tuesday, a reporter noted, “A number of Republican congressional leadership, including in the upper chamber have criticized this action, saying it represents a form of shooting inside the tent and the kind of backward-looking politics of grievance that Donald Trump embodies rather than the forward-looking issues-based approach that most party officials agree will be necessary for the GOP to reclaim majorities in November.”
When asked for her reaction to the censures, Stefanik replied, “The RNC has every right to take any action. And the position that I have is that you’re ultimately held accountable to voters in your district. Voters who you represent. And we’re going to hear the feedback and the views of voters pretty quickly here this year.”
Watch her comments below:
“The RNC has every right to take any action…You’re ultimately held accountable to voters in your district, voters who you represent,” House GOP Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik says when asked about party censure for Reps. Cheney and Kinzinger. https://t.co/01XrHo2Tnv pic.twitter.com/XKsdMjGeRw
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) February 8, 2022
The RNC voted to censure Cheney and Kinzinger on Friday, as IJR reported.
The resolution claims the lawmakers participated in the “persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate discourse” through their work with the select committee investigating the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Some Republican lawmakers have spoken out against the censure, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
“I’m not here to be a representative of the Republican Party. I’m here to be the representative of Alaska people. And I take that job very seriously,” she said.
Murkowski added, “When the party is taking an approach or saying things that I think are just absolutely wrong, I think it is my responsibility as an Alaskan senator speaking out for Alaskans to just speak the truth.”
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) called it a “scandal,” adding, “It’s an outrage and it’s a threat to our constitutional order what they’re doing, and generations to come will celebrate the courage of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.”
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R- La.) tweeted, “The RNC is censuring Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger because they are trying to find out what happened on January 6th – HUH?”