GOP Chair Defends Party Infighting While Condemning Cheney, Kinzinger

GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said during an appearance on Fox News that differing opinions are welcomed in the party while also condemning the actions of Republican Representatives Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney.

McDaniel, who was on Wednesday with host Harris Faulkner, responded to a clip of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who on Tuesday disagreed with the RNC's recent censures of Cheney and Kinzinger. The Kentucky senator provided push back to the move saying it's "not the job of the RNC" to single out members of the party who have different views. Instead, McConnell stated the national party committees traditionally support all members, "regardless of their positions on some issues."

The chairwoman of the RNC defended the censure, mentioning that disagreement is great and accepted in the GOP, and then continued on to slam Kinzinger and Cheney for their willingness "to go with Nancy Pelosi."

"But what I will say is disagreement in our party is welcome, it makes us great. We can have that, we have a big tent. But when you have two members who are willing to go with Nancy Pelosi, when the minority, when the Republican Party was not able to put people on that committee of their choosing, that's a step too far. And that's where the RNC members, who represent the grassroots, came down on this issue."

McDaniel also called out the media for twisting the words in the censure passed on Friday, which referred to the events on January 6 as "legitimate political discourse."

"Well, first let me start by saying that the media has really distorted some of the language in this censure. Legitimate political discourse never includes violence. There was a bomb in front of the RNC on January 6. I know better than anyone, violence isn't part of that discourse."

During Wednesday's appearance, McDaniel also slammed the actions of the House committee investigating the Capitol riots, saying that they have taken things too far.

"We think the January 6 commission has gone beyond its scope. It's reaching into people who weren't even there on January 6. Some of them are RNC members who had nothing to do with any of the violence we saw at the Capitol, that we condemn unilaterally."

On Wednesday, former President Donald Trump also responded to Senator McConnell for not supporting the RNC's censures of the GOP's most outspoken Trump critics and for claiming that January 6 was "a violent insurrection" with the intention of stopping the peaceful transfer of power.

Trump blasted McConnell, saying that he "does not speak for the Republican Party" and that the Kentucky senator "did nothing to fight for his constituents and stop the most fraudulent election in American history."

Newsweek reached out to the RNC and the offices of Representatives Cheney and Kinzinger for comment but did not hear back before publication.