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President-elect Donald Trump thinks former Rep. Liz Cheney could face serious consequences after a House panel called for her to be investigated by the FBI for possible witness tampering during her handling of the Capitol riot probe.
“Liz Cheney could be in a lot of trouble based on the evidence obtained by the subcommittee, which states that ‘numerous federal laws were likely broken by Liz Cheney, and these violations should be investigated by the FBI,’” Trump posted about his old foe on Truth Social early Wednesday morning.
His comments came hours after the Committee on House Administration’s Subcommittee on Oversight issued an interim report Tuesday calling for the Justice Department to investigate Cheney’s actions just weeks ahead of Trump taking office.
Cheney (R-Wyo.) allegedly exchanged calls and messages with Cassidy Hutchinson, a first-term White House aide to then-President Trump, via the encrypted app Signal just weeks before her June 2022 testimony — much of which was later largely debunked, House Republicans have previously claimed.
It remains to be seen if Trump’s nominees to lead the Justice Department will act on the committee’s recommendation.
“Evidence uncovered by the Subcommittee revealed that former Congresswoman Liz Cheney tampered with at least one witness, Cassidy Hutchinson, by secretly communicating with Hutchinson without Hutchinson’s attorney’s knowledge,” the report from chairman Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) said.
The former Wyoming rep’s communications with Hutchinson were illegal and were “outside the due functioning of the legislative process and therefore not protected by the Speech and Debate clause,” Loudermilk claimed.
Hutchinson testified publicly that she was told Trump was so when Secret Service agents refused to take his motorcade to the Capitol on the day of the riots that he “lunged” for the steering wheel.
However, photos from the day showed that Hutchinson had misidentified the vehicle where the alleged encounter took place — and the driver later confirmed Hutchinson’s testimony was false.
Cheney, the former No. 3 House Republican, fired back on Tuesday afternoon, accusing Loudermilk of “lies and defamatory allegations.”
Cheney, who backed Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, had repeatedly clashed with Trump throughout his first term.
Cheney is reportedly on President Biden’s list of people to pre-emptively pardon before he leaves the White House.
