Liz Cheney calls Stefanik a ‘total crackpot’

Former Rep. Liz Cheney called Rep. Elise Stefanik a “total crackpot” for her change of heart on the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, which she now says has resulted in the U.S. government holding “hostages.”

In a post Tuesday on the social-media site X, Ms. Cheney linked Ms. Stefanik’s statement from that day condemning the attack in what the Wyoming Republican called “a rare moment of honesty” on the matter.

“One day she will have to explain how and why she morphed into a total crackpot. History, and our children, deserve to know,” Ms. Cheney said.

In her initial Jan. 6 statement, Ms. Stefanik calls it “truly a tragic day for America.”

“I fully condemn the dangerous violence and destruction that occurred today at the United States Capitol. Americans have a Constitutional right to protest and freedom of speech, but violence in any form is absolutely unacceptable and anti-American,” the New York Republican said. “The perpetrators of this un-American violence and destruction must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

But Ms. Stefanik’s original statement is a big contrast from how she talks about the event now.

In an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” earlier this month, Ms. Stefanik echoed the rhetoric of former President Donald Trump, saying she has “concerns about the treatment of the Jan. 6 hostages.”

A spokesperson for Ms. Stefanik, who as House Republican Conference chair is the chamber’s fourth-ranking Republican, dismissed the claims, calling Ms. Cheney irrelevant.

“Liz Cheney’s only remaining relevance is that she will soon have to answer for her role in deleting and hiding evidence from the investigation into the sham January 6 Select Committee,” the spokesperson said.

Ms. Steafnik’s Jan. 6-related word choice led fellow New York Rep. Dan Goldman, a Democrat, to unveil a resolution last week to censure his Republican colleague.

In his resolution, Mr. Goldman said Ms. Stefanik “has supported the duly charged and convicted Jan. 6 insurrectionists.”

His resolution also mentions comments she has made about special counsel Jack Smith, who oversees Mr. Trump election fraud case in Washington, and the House Jan. 6 select committee.

Ms. Cheney has been a vocal critic of Mr. Trump and has made headlines in the recent months for promoting her book about Jan. 6.

She was one of the nine House Republicans who voted to impeach him a week after the attack. She also served as vice chair on the select committee, although she was appointed to the panel by the chamber’s Democrats.

Ms. Cheney lost her reelection bid in the 2022 Republican primary to Trump-backed challenger Harriet Hageman, who now holds the seat.

Ms. Stefanik has been considered to be on the short list for potential vice president picks for Mr. Trump, the frontrunner for the GOP nominee for president.