But as many Republicans have worked to rehabilitate the image of the former president – and made the political calculation that the party cannot succeed in the midterms without his backing – discontent with Cheney has slowly grown. As other Republicans who voted to impeach Trump have seemed to move on to direct their fire at President Biden, Cheney has continued to lambaste Trump and said the GOP needs to distance itself from him.
This has led to awkward moments with other House leaders, brewing discontent among rank-and-file members and a schism that seemed to irreparably explode at House Republicans' policy retreat in Florida late last month.
Cheney, for her part, has not backed down from her position that Republicans must denounce Trump's false election claims, which he's continued to relitigate as recently as Monday.
