A week before former President Donald Trump's term ended last January, 10 Republicans in the House of Representatives joined all Democrats in the January 6 presidential election. voted to impeach President Trump for instigating the riots. US Capitol.
Since then he has been over a year and a half, and after a series of acrimonious broadsides directed at Republicans who dared to speak out against Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump has taken some measure of revenge.
Four of his 10 congressmen who voted for impeachment chose to retire rather than face a pro-Trump candidate in a difficult party primary. , and four of his were defeated in intra-party showdowns by pro-Trump challengers in recent months. Only 2 in 10 are competing with the Democratic opposition in the November general election.
Trump has announced that his most vocal opponent, Rep. Liz Cheney of western Wyoming, will outright defeat Trump-backed candidate Harriet Hedgeman in Tuesday's congressional primary. After the defeat, he gloated over the victory. Hageman has accepted Trump's debunked allegations that he has also cheated out of his four-year term.
Cheney was key in the congressional investigation into the riots at the Capitol on January 6 and in Trump's efforts in the weeks following his November 2020 election loss. has played a role. He lost to Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.
After Cheney lost by more than 2-1 to him, Trump said on his Truth Social: Riot.
"Liz Cheney should be ashamed of herself, her actions, and her malicious and sacred words and actions towards others," Trump said. "Now she can finally disappear into the depths of political oblivion, where I am sure she will be much happier than she is now. Thank you, Wyoming."
16} Undeterred, Cheney said Wednesday morning that he is considering running for president in 2024.But soon Trump will face several state and federal investigations into his actions to reverse the 2020 results and his role in the Capitol riots. The FBI is also investigating the discovery of highly classified national security documents he kept at his Florida beachside Mar-a-Lago estate, and New York officials have determined that he will be elected president. Previously, it explored the Trump Organization's activities in the global real estate empire.
Cheney has often vowed to do everything he can to prevent Trump from becoming president again. But it's unclear if she'll attract a national following: Biden, 79, says he's aiming for re-election, but some Democratic activists say he wants a younger candidate in 2024. It has said. Democrat Doug White defeated a Trump-backed Republican challenger in the November election.
Another impeachment voter, California Republican Rep. somehow avoided being targeted by Trump, even though he said he was "undoubtedly the driving force behind the devastating events" in the riots.
Trump did not endorse Republicans opposing Baradao in the June primary. The fourth term will face Democratic opponents in pro-Democratic congressional districts in November.
Besides Cheney, Republicans Jaime Herrera Beutler of Washington, Peter Meyer of Midwestern Michigan, and Tom Rice of Southern South Carolina have all voted for Trump in the recent Republican primary. Candidates were exiled. Moon.
His four other Republican congressmen who voted for Trump's impeachment decided to retire – Fred Upton of Michigan. John Catko of New York. Illinois' Adam Kinzinger, like Cheney, was a vocal critic of Trump at his January Commission of Inquiry. Anthony Gonzalez of Midwest Ohio.
Some of those who chose to retire said Trump supporters targeted them for the impeachment vote, often making acrimonious threats.
When he announced nearly a year ago that he would not seek re-election, Gonzalez said he was concerned about the safety of his wife and children.
After the House voted in favor of impeaching Trump, a Senate vote acquitted him, but a trial that took place after Biden took office put seven Republicans on trial. officers convicted him.
Of those senators, only Alaska Senator Lisa Markowski will be re-elected this year. She stepped forward in Tuesday's poll to face Kelly Tsivaka, a Trump-backed challenger in the November election. Murkowski led her Tshibaka by four points in her 19-man primary, with the top four advancing to her November ballot.
