Liz Cheney Issues New Brutal Rebuke of Donald Trump

Former GOP Representative Liz Cheney issued a new rebuke of Donald Trump on Wednesday after the president signed an executive order launching an investigation into Chris Krebs, an official in his first administration.

Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment on Thursday.

Why It Matters

Trump's order marked an intensification of his efforts to use presidential power to punish critics and perceived enemies. He vowed repeatedly during his presidential campaign to target his critics and political rivals and has taken several actions in recent months to do so.

Cheney, who represented Wyoming, became one of Trump's most prominent critics following the 2020 election and the January 6, 2021, pro-Trump riot at the U.S. Capitol. She voted to impeach Trump along with nine other Republicans afterward.

What To Know

Following Trump's signing of the order, Cheney re-posted a clip of the president's remarks about his new action, and rebuked the move.

"In a special mix of incompetence and evil, Trump has combined his disastrous implementation of 1930s tariff policies with Stalinesque targeting of political adversaries. The 2020 election wasn't stolen and speaking the truth is only a crime in countries ruled by tyrants," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

In his comments, Trump described Krebs sarcastically as a "wise guy," claiming that the 2020 election was a "disaster."

Krebs served as the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in Trump's first administration and worked to counter the president's false claims that he won the 2020 election. Shortly after the election, Krebs' agency released a statement, saying "the November 3rd election was the most secure in American history."

Trump fired Krebs a few days later and continued to insist that the election had been "stolen" in favor of Joe Biden.

Numerous independent audits and reviews in critical swing states have consistently countered Trump's characterization. Dozens of legal challenges brought by Trump and his allies also failed in court, including when reviewed by judges appointed by the Republican president.

January 6 and Cheney's Opposition To Trump

On January 6, 2021, hundreds of Trump's supporters rioted at the U.S. Capitol, believing that the election was stolen. While the riot temporarily delayed the 2020 election's formal certification, Biden was inevitably confirmed as the winner in a joint session of Congress.

Trump was impeached on January 13, 2021, by the House, with Cheney backing the effort. The Senate ultimately acquitted Trump, falling short of the two-thirds majority required for a conviction. However, a majority of senators, including five Republicans, voted to convict, with the final tally 57-43.

Cheney went on to be one of two Republicans who served on the House select committee that carried out an investigation of the events of January 6, as well as Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. In response, Trump backed a primary challenger, to whom Cheney lost in the 2022 midterms.

The president previously said that Cheney should be jailed for her stand against him. He has threatened to target her and others involved with the January 6 investigation, but Biden issued a preemptive pardon for her and the other involved lawmakers right before leaving office in January.

Cheney endorsed and campaigned for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. After Trump's win, the Republican wrote on X:

"Our nation's democratic system functioned last night and we have a new President-elect. All Americans are bound, whether we like the outcome or not, to accept the results of our elections. We now have a special responsibility, as citizens of the greatest nation on earth, to do everything we can to support and defend our Constitution, preserve the rule of law, and ensure that our institutions hold over these coming four years."

What People Are Saying

Republican political strategist Sarah Longwell to MSNBC on Wednesday on Trump's executive order: "This is some of the most insane authoritarian stuff we've seen out of him."

Chris Krebs wrote in a December 2020 op-ed in The Washington Post: "The 2020 election was the most secure in U.S. history. This success should be celebrated by all Americans, not undermined in the service of a profoundly un-American goal."

Political strategist Tim Miller, a former Republican, on MSNBC on Wednesday: "Trump wants to continue to argue that he really won in 2020... He's going after Chris Krebs for doing his job the right way."

What Happens Next

Trump's executive order on Wednesday followed a string of orders by the president targeting law firms and individuals involved in investigations or legal actions against him, including revoking security clearances and suspending federal contracts. While some have settled, others are mounting legal challenges, setting the stage for a broader legal and constitutional clash.