Trump critic Liz Cheney on what’s wrong with American politics: ‘We prefer idiots’ | Abroad

Cheney lost her seat in Congress last year to a candidate backed by former President Trump. The Republican is one of Trump’s biggest critics and has repeated several times that she considers the ex-president unfit for the highest office in the US. Cheney also served as co-chair of the House of Representatives Committee of Inquiry that investigated the January 6, 2021 storming of the Capitol. The committee consisted mainly of Democrats.

Moderator David Rubenstein asked her if she would contest next year’s election as an independent candidate if the polls showed that doing so could harm Trump’s chances. “Look, I think the country is facing very challenging and fundamentally important issues right now,” Cheney replied. “And what we have done in our politics is to create a situation where we prefer idiots.” The remark was met with laughter from the audience.

According to Cheney, the election of serious candidates transcends party politics. “Because of the situation we’re in, where we have a major party candidate trying to disintegrate our democracy – and I’m not saying that lightly – we have to think: OK, what kind of alliances are needed to make him defeat? And those are the alliances we need to build across party lines.”

Cheney left open whether she will run for president. In the past, she has already made it clear that she will not do that if this can turn out in Trump’s favor. He is currently leading the polls for the Republican primary. It is possible that Cheney’s candidacy would contribute to splitting the vote for his opponents, giving him the nomination. “I’m not going to do anything that would help Donald Trump,” she said Tuesday during a conversation with NBC News in Aspen, Colorado. She says she is currently focusing on “stopping Donald Trump at all costs” and on “helping other candidates”. A final decision will not be made until later this year, Cheney said.

If Trump were reelected, he would focus on “retribution,” Cheney warned. His staff would include people she describes as “bad actors,” such as Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn. “Trump wouldn’t have responsible people in the Justice Department” or elsewhere in the government, she said. After all, according to her, he is keen to strike back at his alleged enemies.