Liz Cheney is no heroine of mine. She, like many loud and proud non-POC Republican politicians, live their lives in the in-between, where political stances, Christianity and integrity can be parsed. Cheney allowed herself to be primaried by calling out the Big Lie advanced by 666 Queens, as I call the twice impeached, disgraced former president.
Her takedowns of 666 Queens during the January 6 attempted coup hearings have become legendary in some circles. “President Trump is a 76-year-old man,” Cheney said on July 12. “He is not an impressionable child. Just like everyone else in our country, he is responsible for his own actions and his own choices.”
And so is Cheney. Unfortunately, her idea of democracy does not include standing up for the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement, which she opposed along party lines. Her waxy pronouncements about dignity, integrity and the American way do not include protecting the vote for people who look like me. Her actions and choices on this issue make her a hypocrite in my eyes. I do not celebrate her.
Cheney pilloried former President Barack Obama over the Affordable Care Act, although she like all congresspeople, has access to healthcare paid for by we the people. (Like many freelancers, I cherish my policy; it is the only viable option I have to be insured.) It took an attempted coup for Cheney to speak out with similar vitriol against a president from her own party.
Those who are or who love LGBTQ Americans can’t forget Cheney’s 2013 appearance on Fox News during which she threw her gay sister under the bus to uphold “conservative” values. “I love Mary very much. I love her family very much. This is just an issue on which we disagree,” Liz said of same-sex marriage. She did reverse herself on gay marriage last fall, citing it as a personal issue. But one must wonder which version of Cheney to believe.
Contrary to the opinions of many of the former president’s cultlike followers, Cheney is not an agent of Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats. She voted with 666 Queens almost 93 percent of the time he was in office. As a middle-class Black woman with ties to several other nations affected by 666’s anti-immigrant policies and his baffling support for dictators who jail or assassinate their political rivals and murder those deemed undesirable, I reject the policies of 666 Queens and Cheney.
666 Queens ruffled Cheney’s feathers. The idea of the beautiful capitol buildings being sacked as she ran for her life has made her spill her mint julip tea. But the idea of people like me losing my right to vote is not a blip on her radar, though. Funny, ain’t it? Liz Cheney’s parsed definition of democracy does not include one person, one vote. Liz Cheney is no heroine of mine; I do not celebrate her.
I can’t imagine the peril that those like Cheney invite into their lives by publicly opposing 666 Queens. Being on several hit lists and the recipient of violent, vulgar missives must be nerve wracking and bewildering, exposure that her NRA triple rating and conservative voting record ultimately cannot protect her from.
But Cheney is unlike other members of Congress and the poll workers Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman, who were forced to leave their Georgia homes after 666 Queens and his accomplice—Rudy Giuliani, the mayor of selective portions of America—lied that the women participated in voter fraud. She has the Cheney fortune (approximately $150 million) to lean on to pay for personal security.
As non-POC pundits in the media gush over Cheney’s courage, POC pundits sigh and await their turns to gently divest their colleagues of their fantasy. Even if Cheney is able to make a dent in the cult-like persona of 666 Queens and his crime family, there are more where he came from (666 Florida, 666 Texas). Brace yourselves.
As reluctant niece Mary Trump has said, when her putrid uncle goes away his total disregard for the law, his non intellectualism, his disdain for women and people who don’t look like him and in fact for basic human decency, will remain. “This is who we are as Americans,” Mary Trump has said, flatly.
Whether Cheney continues to be the thorn in the side of 666 Queens or not, I do not embrace her. When she does her tour on the Sunday shows this weekend to flirt with the idea of running for president, I will be watching something else. The bar is low when we laud a politician simply for telling the truth. What we should be doing is holding the liars to account, starting with the former president. In the meantime, I do not celebrate Liz Cheney. She is no heroine of mine.
And so is Cheney. Unfortunately, her idea of democracy does not include standing up for the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement, which she opposed along party lines. Her waxy pronouncements about dignity, integrity and the American way do not include protecting the vote for people who look like me. Her actions and choices on this issue make her a hypocrite in my eyes. I do not celebrate her.
Liz Cheney pilloried former President Barack Obama over the Affordable Care Act, although she like all congresspeople, has access to healthcare paid for by we the people. Like many freelancers, I cherish my policy; it is the only viable option I have to be insured. It took an attempted coup until Cheney could speak out with similar vitriol against a president from her own party.
Those who are or who love LGBTQ Americans can’t forget Cheney’s 2013 appearance on Fox News when she threw her gay sister under the bus to uphold “conservative” values. “I love Mary very much. I love her family very much. This is just an issue on which we disagree,” Liz said of same-sex marriage. She did reverse herself on gay marriage last fall, citing it as a personal issue. But one must wonder which version of Cheney to believe.
Contrary to the opinions of many of the former president’s cultlike followers, Cheney is not an agent of Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats. She voted with 666 Queens almost 93 percent of the time he was in office. As a middle-class Black woman with ties to several other nations affected by 666’s anti-immigrant policies and his baffling support for dictators who jail or assassinate their political rivals and murder those deemed undesirable, I reject the policies of 666 Queens and Cheney.
666 Queens ruffled Cheney’s feathers. The idea of the beautiful capitol buildings being sacked as she ran for her life has made her spill her mint julip tea. But the idea of people like me losing my right to vote is not a blip on her radar, though. Funny, ain’t it? Cheney’s selective definition of democracy does not include one person, one vote. Cheney is no heroine of mine; I do not celebrate her.
I can’t imagine the peril that those like Cheney invite into their lives by publicly opposing 666 Queens. Being on several hit lists and the recipient of violent, vulgar missives must be nerve wracking and bewildering, exposure that her NRA triple rating and conservative voting record ultimately cannot protect her from.
But Cheney is unlike other members of Congress and the poll workers Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman, who were forced to leave their Georgia homes after 666 Queens and his accomplice—Rudy Giuliani, the mayor of selective portions of America—lied that the women participated in voter fraud. She has the Cheney fortune (approximately $150 million) to lean on to pay for personal security.
As non-POC pundits in the media gush over Cheney’s courage, POC pundits sigh and await their turns to gently divest their colleagues of their fantasy. Even if Cheney is able to make a dent in the cult-like persona of 666 Queens and his crime family, there are more where he came from (666 Florida, 666 Texas). Brace yourselves.
As reluctant niece Mary Trump has said, when her putrid uncle goes away his total disregard for the law, his non intellectualism, his disdain for women and people who don’t look like him and in fact for basic human decency, will remain. “This is who we are as Americans,” Mary Trump has said, flatly.
Whether Cheney continues to be the thorn in the side of 666 Queens or not, I do not embrace her. When she does her tour of the Sunday news shows this weekend to flirt with the idea of running for president, I will be watching something else. The bar is low when we laud a politician simply for telling the truth. What we should be doing is holding the liars to account, starting with the former president. In the meantime, I do not celebrate Liz Cheney. She is no heroine of mine.
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