In a letter sent to his Republican colleagues on Monday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told his GOP colleagues to “anticipate” a vote on Wednesday regarding the current state of the House GOP Conference Chair position, which is expected to end with Liz Cheney being removed from her leadership role over her opposition to former President Donald Trump, CNN writes.
It’s the latest step toward Cheney’s inevitable replacement with Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, who has a more moderate voting record but has been a full-throated supporter of Trump.
It’s Cheney’s criticism of Trump, his false claims of election fraud, and his incitement of a mob ahead of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot that has led many Republicans to want her removed from the conference chair role, making it ironic that McCarthy wrote in his letter that the GOP is a “big tent party,” and “unlike the left, we embrace free thought and debate.”
In his letter, which was first reported by Punchbowl News and obtained by CNN, McCarthy does not mention Cheney by name but said that he and the leadership team should “exist to serve you, not the other way around.”
He goes on to say that he wants the “driving focus” of the House GOP to be to win the majority in 2022.
“A vote on conference chair is necessary because the controversy over Cheney is distracting from the main goals of winning back the majority,” McCarthy writes.
“If we are to succeed in stopping the radical Democrat agenda from destroying our country, these internal conflicts need to be resolved so as to not detract from the efforts of our collective team. It’s clear we need to make a change. And you should anticipate a vote on recalling the Conference Chair this Wednesday,” McCarthy adds.
McCarthy then tells his fellow members that his goal is to allow the free flow of ideas within the party, but makes it clear the job of leadership is be focused on the goals of the entire caucus, not just one member.
“We represent Americans of all backgrounds and continue to grow our movement by the day. And unlike the left, we embrace free thought and debate, but out leadership team cannot afford to be distracted by the important work we were elected to do and the shared goals we hope to achieve,” McCarthy writes.
He confirmed on Sunday that he backs Stefanik for the role.
There’s a possibility that Cheney, in her capacity as House conference chairwoman, could end up calling the vote that will lead to her ouster. But plans remain fluid and the exact procedure could change, a source familiar with the matter tells CNN.
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