Wyoming Republican primary candidate Harriet Hageman on Thursday night’s debate stage slammed opponent Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) for being “obsessed” with the partisan January 6 Committee while failing to address relevant issues to Wyoming.
Referencing Cheney’s deep participation in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) committee, Hageman said on stage that “the press and certain people have obsessed over January 6.”
“The only time that the January 6 situation ever comes up is when people talk about how unfair this entire committee is,” Hageman said about her 30,000 miles of campaign travel through Wyoming. She continually “focuses an awful lot of time on the January 6 committee, but she’s not addressing the issues that are important to Wyoming.”
“I’m the only real proven success up here on this stage. I have been fighting the issues for Wyoming for over 25 years,” Hageman said.
Harriet Hageman (Instagram/hagemanforwy)
During the January 6 Committee’s hearings, Cheney has fallen in the polls, trailing far behind Hageman. In one poll, Hageman leads Cheney by 28 points. In another, she leads by 30 points.
Hageman has consistently highlighted Cheney’s absence from Wyoming to lead House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s committee by labeling Cheney a “DC diva” who is “using her seat as Wyoming’s representative to pursue her own agenda” on the partisan January 6 committee.
Nancy Pelosi and Liz Cheney (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
“That’s not our agenda. We don’t agree with what Liz Cheney is doing,” Hageman said in April about Cheney’s participation.
According to the New York Times, Cheney is rarely seen in Wyoming and has even charged Wyoming residents $10 for admission to a campaign event, Politico reported about a gathering at Jackson’s Center for the Arts. At the event, Cheney reportedly only answered pre-selected questions from Wyoming voters.
Cheney has fought back against Hageman by asking Democrats for their votes, sending direct mailers to Wyoming Democrats. She has requested Democrats change parties to be eligible to vote in the open Republican primary.
Cheney’s direct mailing scheme is a flip-flop from what she told the Times in February. “That is not something that I have contemplated, that I have organized, or that I will organize,” Cheney said about soliciting Democrat votes.
Whatever Liz Cheney is doing with our only House seat, she certainly isn’t using it to represent the views and values of the people of Wyoming. The lawful possession of firearms for hunting and self-defense is an integral part of our DNA in this state. Read my full statement: pic.twitter.com/2RRO1LxJqN
— Harriet Hageman – Text WYOMING to 90103 (@HagemanforWY) June 24, 2022
Cheney is in hot water for opposing Trump and his policies, voting to impeach the former president, and allying herself with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) January 6 Committee, which has sought to investigate the January 6 incident without focusing on the alleged FBI informants at the Capitol.
Cheney’s conduct has drawn condemnation from the Wyoming Republican Party and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. After the Wyoming GOP voted to no longer recognize her as a Republican in November, in February, McCarthy announced his endorsement of Hageman to defeat Cheney, a rare move for a minority leader.
“Liz Cheney has lost Wyoming. Liz Cheney doesn’t live in Wyoming. She doesn’t represent us,” Hageman told Breitbart News. “She doesn’t represent our values.”
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.