- A Republican senator who opposed Trump’s two impeachments defended Liz Cheney and Lisa Murkowski.
- Both Republican Party lawmakers voted to impeach Trump this year, drawing reaction from his own party.
- Trump said last week that the Republican Party needed to “get rid” of the lawmakers who voted to condemn him.
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A Republican Party senator who voted against Trump’s conviction after his impeachment in 2020 and 2021 spoke in support of his colleagues who did so after the former president targeted them in a speech last week.
In a statement to Politico, Trump said on Saturday that he would actively campaign against Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski, who was one of seven Republican senators to vote to condemn Trump in his second Senate impeachment trial.
“I will not, under any circumstances, endorse the failed candidate from the great state of Alaska, Lisa Murkowski. She represents her state badly and her country even worse, Trump told the media.
But Murkowski’s colleague, Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, said he supported her on Sunday.
“I always want to make sure that we nominate someone who can win in November,” Barrasso said during an interview on Sunday with NBC News’ “Meet the Press”.
“Lisa Murkowski knows Alaska better than anyone, and she is an incredible fighter for American energy. She has not made an announcement if she is going to run again. If she does, I will support her, ”he continued.
In his speech last week at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Trump targeted Wyoming Republican MP Liz Cheney, calling her a “warmaker” who “loves to see our troops fighting”.
“Now, more than ever, it is time for tough, strong and energetic Republican leaders who have steel bones,” Trump said last week during his first speech since leaving office. “We cannot have leaders who show more passion for condemning their fellow Americans than they have ever shown for facing the Democrats, the media and the radicals who want to turn America into a socialist country.”
But Barrasso on Sunday spoke on behalf of Cheney, saying that they “work together in the fight against the Biden government.
“So I support her. I totally disagree with her on the issue of impeachment. She voted for one side, I voted for the other,” he said.
Cheney was censored by the Wyoming Republican Party after her vote to impeach the former president for her role in inciting the January 6 riot at the US Capitol, which left five people dead. She was one of 10 members of the House Republican Party to vote for Trump’s impeachment.
During his speech at CPAC, Trump said Republicans should “get rid” of Cheney and the Republicans who did not support him during his last impeachment trial. The Senate failed to convict Trump in February after all 50 Democrats and seven Republicans voted for the sentencing, while 43 Republicans voted for absolution.