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House Republicans oust Cheney from leadership as she vows to stop Trump

"We cannot both embrace the big lie and embrace the Constitution," she said.

ByLibby Cathey, Benjamin Siegel, and Mariam Khan
Last Updated: May 12, 2021, 9:09 AM EDT

House Republicans voted Wednesday to remove Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney from her House GOP leadership position following her criticism of former President Donald Trump and his continued attacks on the 2020 election.

Cheney, who has branded herself as an "unapologetic conservative," speaking on the House floor Tuesday night, delivered a searing indictment of House GOP leaders seeking to expel her from their ranks after she voted to impeach Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Here is how the vote and reaction unfolded:

May 12, 2021, 9:09 AM EDT

McCarthy arrives on the Hill

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy arrived on Capitol Hill before 9 a.m. Wednesday when House Republicans are scheduled to meet behind closed doors to decide whether to remove Liz Cheney from her leadership post via secret ballot.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy arrives as House Republicans meet at the Capitol to decide whether to remove Rep. Liz Cheney from her leadership post.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP

McCarthy announced the vote to recall Cheney on Monday, after he told Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" he supported New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, who has supported the "big lie" about the election, for the No. 3 House Republican position.

House Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who joined Cheney and eight other House Republicans in voting to impeach Trump, has criticized McCarthy in recent days as being hypocritical, pointing to how McCarthy gave a floor speech in January also tying Trump to the Capitol attack before traveling to Mar-a-Lago to see the former president weeks later.

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