Liz Cheney Wants to Save the GOP But There's Very Little Left to Salvage

You have to admire Rep. Liz Cheney's tenacity, her mission to salvage something from the unholy train wreck of Donald Trump. Unfortunately, the GOP has no interest in being saved and the stolen election lie is the "secret handshake" to remain in the Republican clubhouse.

Cheney may well lose her Republican leadership post over remarks criticizing former President Donald Trump’s unfounded [and increasingly weird] claims that he won the 2020 election. She understands that her Party's fealty to Trump's baseless lies undermines the very foundation of our democratic republic.

Cheney, Wash. Post: "Trump is seeking to unravel critical elements of our constitutional structure that make democracy work — confidence in the result of elections and the rule of law. No other American president has ever done this. ... The Republican Party is at a turning point, and Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth and fidelity to the Constitution."

Liz Cheney: "We must be brave enough to defend the basic principles that underpin and protect our freedom and our democratic process. I am committed to doing that, no matter what the short-term political consequences might be."

Cheney is among a handful of elected Republican officials willing to risk their political careers to set the record straight. Most seem quite comfortable defending Trump's conspiracy theories about the election even if they realize they have no basis in fact, undermine our democracy, and damage our standing in the world.

Republican Speech Writer and Political Commentator Michael Gerson: "Nothing about this is normal. The GOP is increasingly defined not by its shared beliefs, but by its shared delusions. To be a loyal Republican, one must be either a sucker or a liar. And because this defining falsehood is so obviously and laughably false, we can safely assume that most Republican leaders who embrace it fall into the second category. Knowingly repeating a lie — an act of immorality — is now the evidence of Republican fidelity."

The GOP needs a "reformation," a thorough cleansing, but that's unlikely to happen until something far worse than January 6th occurs. Liz Cheney understands the danger and is trying to prevent a real crack in the nation's foundation. Very few Republicans have the courage to stand with her.

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By: Don Lam & Curated Content