Cheney singled out for retribution in House Republicans' Jan. 6 report
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Then-Rep. Liz Cheney, Vice Chairwoman of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, participates in the last public meeting on Capitol Hill on Dec. 19, 2022. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
House Republicans in a new report pushed for former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) to be criminally investigated over her work on the House Jan. 6 select committee.
The big picture: The Republican party's years-long recasting of the deadly U.S. Capitol attack has culminated with the possibility that the rioters themselves are pardoned and those who sought to penalize President-elect Trump for his role in the attack face retribution.
- A House Republican subcommittee led by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) released a 128-page report that calls for Cheney, who lost her primary bid in 2022, to be investigated by the FBI.
- In an overnight Truth Social post, Trump said that, because of Cheney's work on the Jan. 6 panel, which was dissolved in early 2023, she "could be in a lot of trouble based on the evidence obtained by the subcommittee."
- The president-elect has previously claimed that House Jan. 6 select committee members should be jailed.
State of play: Loudermilk, who chairs the oversight subcommittee of the House Administration Committee, painted the work of the Democratic-led Jan. 6 committee as biased against Trump, accusing the lawmakers of presenting "uncorroborated, cherry-picked, and, at times, false evidence."
- Cheney, who served as vice-chair of the committee and one of its two Republican members, characterized the report's allegations as "a malicious and cowardly assault on the truth."
Zoom in: The report accuses Cheney of colluding with Cassidy Hutchison, a former Trump administration official and star witness for the dissolved panel during high-profile hearings in 2022.
- It alleged Cheney had conversations with Hutchinson without the knowledge of the former Trump aide's attorney. The report claimed Cheney influenced a "dramatic change in testimony" from Hutchinson.
- Hutchinson recounted to the select committee that she had experienced a "moral struggle," testifying that her attorney, Stefan Passantino, instructed her to downplay what she knew.
Hutchinson said she chose to use former White House aide Alyssa Farah Griffin, who has since become a public figure in television, as a back channel to reengage with lawmakers.
- Loudermilk's report alleges Farah Griffin worked with Cheney to help Hutchinson "Change her Story."
What she's saying: Cheney refuted the findings of the report, which she said "intentionally disregards the truth and the Select Committee's tremendous weight of evidence," in a statement.
- "The January 6th Committee's hearings and report featured scores of republican witnesses, including any of the most senior officials from Trump's own White House," she wrote.
Between the lines: The Biden administration has considered granting preemptive pardons to Trump targets including Cheney, but some Democrats think the novel move could set a risky precedent.
What to watch: Trump has ramped up legal threats against his critics and media companies since winning the 2024 election.
- He sued the Des Moines Register and its former top pollster this week over a shock poll that showed him on track to lose Iowa to Vice President Harris. Separately, ABC agreed over the weekend to a $15 million defamation settlement with the president-elect over a segment on "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos.
- It's unclear how and whether Trump will actually go after his perceived enemies, like Cheney, once his second term starts next month.
- If MAGA loyalist Kash Patel, who has floated a number of conspiracy theories about Jan. 6, is installed to lead the FBI next year, Trump could more easily get his way.
Go deeper: Trump says he will look at pardoning Jan. 6 defendants on first day in office
