Republican figures condemn RNC's decision to censure Cheney and Kinzinger
Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger listen during a committee meeting on Capitol Hill on Dec. 1. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
About 140 Republican leaders and former officials signed a statement out Monday condemning the Republican National Committee's decision last week to censure Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) over their participation in the Jan. 6 select committee.
The big picture: The statement, issued by the Renew America Movement, included signatures from former RNC chief Michael Steele and Trump White House communications aides Alyssa Farah and Anthony Scaramucci.
- Other signatories include former members of Congress and former administration officials.
Driving the news: The RNC said the Jan. 6 panel's work amounted to the "persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate discourse."
What they're saying: The RNC's decision made clear that "it would rather be the 'Big Lie' party than the 'Big Tent' party by condemning two principled elected leaders while condoning conspiracies, lies, and violent insurrection," the statement reads.
- In censuring the two Republican lawmakers, the RNC has "ceded control of a once-great movement to grifters and extremists. The RNC has also signaled that it no longer welcomes people of conscience."
- "The RNC’s description of the January 6th insurrection as “legitimate political discourse” is an affront to the rule of law, peaceful self-government, and the constitutional order."
Go deeper: RNC censures Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger over Jan. 6 committee