Rep. Liz Cheney compares herself to Abraham Lincoln following resounding defeat in Wyoming primary
Former President Donald Trump celebrated Cheney's defeat, while victor Harriet Hageman vowed to be accountable to the citizens of Wyoming
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Following her primary election defeat to Harriet Hageman Tuesday evening, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., used her concession speech to compare herself to former President Abraham Lincoln and hinted that her future in politics might not be finished just yet.
"The great and original champion of our party, Abraham Lincoln, was defeated in elections for the Senate and the House before he won the most important election of all," Cheney told a crowd of supporters in Jackson, Wyoming. "Lincoln ultimately prevailed, he saved our union, and he defined our obligation as Americans for all of history."
"Speaking at Gettysburg of the great task remaining before us, Lincoln said that, ‘We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from this earth.’ As we meet here tonight, that remains our greatest and most important task," she added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Talk has been swirling that Cheney, knowing she would lose to Hageman, was possibly planning a run for president in 2024, and a large portion of her speech focused on attacking former President Donald Trump over his questioning of the results of the 2020 presidential election, and arguing that he should never be elected president again.
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Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., speaks to reporters after House Republicans voted to oust her from her leadership post as chair of the House Republican Conference, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, May 12, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Trump reacted with pure delight to Cheney's loss, referring to it as a "wonderful result" in a post on Truth Social.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Congratulations to Harriet Hageman on her great and very decisive WIN in Wyoming," he wrote. "This is a wonderful result for America, and a complete rebuke of the Unselect Committee of political Hacks and Thugs."
"Liz Cheney should be ashamed of herself, the way she acted, and her spiteful, sanctimonious words and actions towards others. Now she can finally disappear into the depths of political oblivion where, I am sure, she will be much happier than she is right now. Thank you WYOMING!" he added.
The former president also said: "Liz Cheney’s uninspiring concession speech, in front of a ‘tiny’ crowd in the Great State of Wyoming, focused on her belief that the 2020 Presidential Election was not, despite massive and conclusive evidence to the contrary, Rigged & Stolen."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Trump added that "Liz Cheney is a fool who played right into the hands of those who want to destroy our Country!"
Republican congressional candidate Harriet Hageman speaks at a campaign event in Wyoming. (Natalie Behring/Getty Images)
In her victory speech, Hageman vowed to be accountable to the citizens of Wyoming and said that she was "sick and tired of not having a voice in the U.S. House of Representatives," referring to Cheney.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Wyoming has sent the message that if you are going to claim to live in Wyoming, you better damn well live in Wyoming," Hageman said. "Wyoming has drawn a line in the sand that we put you in power, you will be accountable to us, you will answer to us, you will do what is in our best interests, and if you don't, we will fire you."