Liz Cheney accuses Ted Cruz of appealing to ‘secessionist’ vote
The two have antagonised each other since the 6 January riot at the US Capitol exposed fractures within the GOP
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Your support makes all the difference.Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney has accused her colleague Ted Cruz of playing to the “secessionist vote,” her latest broadside against the conservative Texas senator.
The most recent feud between the GOP stars kicked off on Saturday morning, with Senator Cruz reacting on Twitter to a CNN segment about the Wyoming representative potentially running for higher office in 2024.
Mr Cruz cracked that Ms Cheney would have a promising start during the presidential election year—as a member of the opposite party, remarking, “It’s called the Democratic primary.”
At this, Ms Cheney fired back at the Texas legislator, saying he was trying to court the “secessionist vote” and referenced the role the Republican party, then the party of president Abraham Lincoln, played in upholding the Union during the Civil War.
“I know you’re posturing for the secessionist vote, Ted,” she wrote on Twitter. “But my party, the Republican party, saved the Union. You swore an oath to the Constitution. Act like it.”
Senator Cruz has previously entertained the idea of his state splitting off from the United States. During an appearance earlier this month at Texas A&M University, he said he would consider succession if Democrats achieve some of their signature policy priorities.
“If the Democrats end the filibuster, if they fundamentally destroy the country, if they pack the Supreme Court, if they make DC a state, if they federalise elections, if they massively expand voter fraud, there may come a point where it’s hopeless,” Mr Cruz said.
Ms Cheney, who has said she wouldn’t ruled out a future presidential run, has frequently criticised Mr Cruz since the 6 January attack on the US Capitol, calling his actions that day “disqualifying” for any future presidential bid on his part.
Mr Cruz, along with Missouri GOP Senator Josh Hawley, led the effort to deny fully certifying the 2020 presidential election results, a normally symbolic step that occurs after each state fully counts its vote totals.
The Independent has reached out to Mr Cruz’s office for comment.
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