Liz Cheney

Liz Cheney
Born	Elizabeth Lynne Cheney 28 7, 1966
Birthplace	Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Attorney, politician, professor
Title	U.S. Representative from Wyoming's At-Large District
Known for	Vice chair of the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack; opposition to Donald Trump
Education	University of Chicago (JD)
Children	5
Awards	Presidential Citizens Medal (2025)

Elizabeth Lynne Cheney (born July 28, 1966) is an American attorney, former politician, and professor who served as the U.S. representative for Wyoming's at-large congressional district from 2017 to 2023. The elder daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney and former Second Lady Lynne Cheney, she rose through the ranks of Republican leadership to become chair of the House Republican Conference from 2019 to 2021, making her the third-highest-ranking Republican in the House. A career shaped first by hawkish foreign policy work in the State Department and then by legislative politics, Cheney's trajectory took a dramatic turn following the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Her vote to impeach Donald Trump and her subsequent role as vice chair of the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack placed her in direct confrontation with the leadership of her own party, leading to her removal from Republican leadership and ultimately a landslide primary defeat in 2022. Since leaving Congress, Cheney has continued to advocate for constitutional governance, endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, and joined the University of Virginia Center for Politics as a professor of practice.

Early Life

Elizabeth Lynne Cheney was born on July 28, 1966, in Madison, Wisconsin. She is the elder of two daughters born to Dick Cheney, who would go on to serve as U.S. Secretary of Defense and the 46th Vice President of the United States, and Lynne Cheney, who served as chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities and as Second Lady. Her younger sister is Mary Cheney, an LGBT rights activist and political consultant.

Cheney grew up in a politically prominent household. Her father represented Wyoming's at-large congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 to 1989, and the family maintained deep ties to the state. A 2000 profile in The New York Times described the close-knit nature of the Cheney family and its collective involvement in political life.

Cheney's upbringing was steeped in conservative politics and public service. Her father's career in the executive branch—first as White House Chief of Staff under President Gerald Ford, then as a congressman, and later as Secretary of Defense under President George H. W. Bush—provided her with an early and extensive exposure to the workings of the federal government. The influence of her father's political career and ideology would shape Cheney's own trajectory in both foreign policy and elected office. Following her father's death in November 2025, Cheney eulogized him publicly, emphasizing that he had chosen to defend the Constitution over political partisanship.

Education

Cheney attended Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. She subsequently enrolled at the University of Chicago Law School, where she obtained her Juris Doctor degree. Her legal education at the University of Chicago, an institution known for its influence on conservative legal thought, provided her with the credentials that would undergird her subsequent career in law and government.

Career

State Department and Foreign Policy Work

Cheney began her career in government service during the administration of President George W. Bush. In 2002, she was appointed to a position at the U.S. Department of State, as reported by The New York Times. During her tenure at the State Department, Cheney held several positions focused on Middle Eastern affairs and democracy promotion.

A significant element of Cheney's State Department work involved her role as chair of the Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group, which she co-led with Elliott Abrams. The group was established to coordinate U.S. policy toward Iran and Syria, with an emphasis on promoting regime change in Iran. The group's activities drew scrutiny, and it was eventually disbanded. The Boston Globe reported in 2007 on the creation and dissolution of the unit, noting its role in pressuring Iran and Syria.

Cheney's foreign policy views during this period aligned with the neoconservative orientation of the Bush administration. A 2005 assessment in The New York Times discussed the broader State Department dynamics in which Cheney operated. Her work at the State Department also intersected with broader diplomatic shifts, as reported by The New York Times in 2006.

Cheney was also active as an endorser and surrogate in Republican presidential politics. She endorsed Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.

Keep America Safe

In 2009, after the end of the Bush administration, Cheney co-founded Keep America Safe, a nonprofit organization, with conservative commentator Bill Kristol. The organization was focused on national security issues and broadly supported the foreign policy positions of the Bush–Cheney administration. Keep America Safe advocated for a robust military posture, aggressive counterterrorism policies, and criticized the national security approach of the Obama administration.

Media Career

In January 2012, Cheney joined Fox News as a paid contributor, providing commentary on national security and foreign policy matters. Fox News terminated her paid contributor contract after she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate in Wyoming.

2014 Senate Campaign

In 2013, Cheney announced her candidacy for the United States Senate in Wyoming, challenging incumbent Republican Senator Mike Enzi. The campaign generated significant attention due to the Cheney family's prominence and the rarity of a primary challenge to a sitting Republican senator. The Washington Post reported on Cheney's strategy for establishing herself as a Wyoming candidate, noting that she had spent much of her adult life outside the state.

The Senate campaign also brought the Cheney family's internal divisions into public view, particularly regarding the issue of same-sex marriage. Her sister Mary Cheney, who is gay and was in a same-sex relationship, publicly criticized Liz Cheney's stated opposition to same-sex marriage during the campaign. The family disagreement played out in the media and became a subplot of the campaign.

Cheney withdrew from the Senate race in January 2014, citing family health issues. Enzi went on to win re-election.

Election to the House of Representatives

In 2016, following the retirement of Representative Cynthia Lummis, Cheney entered the race for Wyoming's at-large congressional district—the same seat her father had held from 1979 to 1989. She won the Republican primary, leading in the polls throughout the contest. She won the general election in November 2016, securing Wyoming's sole House seat.

House Republican Leadership

Upon taking office in January 2017, Cheney quickly established herself within the Republican conference. She was elected chair of the House Republican Conference in January 2019, succeeding Cathy McMorris Rodgers and becoming the third-highest-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives. In this role, she was responsible for messaging and communications strategy for House Republicans, serving under Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

Cheney's policy positions during her time in Congress were characterized by pro-business stances and hawkish foreign policy views consistent with the neoconservative tradition associated with her father's political legacy. She was critical of certain aspects of the Trump administration's foreign policy, particularly regarding relationships with authoritarian regimes and the withdrawal of U.S. forces from certain regions. However, she also consistently voted in favor of the Trump administration's overall legislative agenda, including tax cuts and deregulation.

Cheney was also involved in environmental and land-use policy debates significant to Wyoming. She was among Republican lawmakers who sought to modify the Endangered Species Act.

January 6 and Impeachment of Donald Trump

The January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol proved to be the defining inflection point of Cheney's political career. In the days following the attack, Cheney became one of the most prominent Republican voices calling for accountability. She was one of ten House Republicans who voted to impeach President Donald Trump for "incitement of insurrection" on January 13, 2021, during his second impeachment.

Cheney's impeachment vote and her continued public criticism of Trump placed her in direct conflict with the majority of the House Republican Conference. On May 12, 2021, House Republicans voted to remove her from her position as chair of the House Republican Conference. She was replaced by Elise Stefanik of New York. The removal was widely seen as a reflection of the Republican Party's realignment around loyalty to Trump.

January 6 Committee

In July 2021, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed Cheney to the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack. In September 2021, she was elevated to vice chair of the committee, a role she held until the committee concluded its work in January 2023.

As vice chair, Cheney played a central role in the committee's public hearings, often delivering opening and closing statements that framed the investigation's findings. The committee investigated the events leading up to and during the January 6 attack, including the actions of President Trump and his associates in the period between the November 2020 election and the Capitol breach.

Cheney's role on the January 6 Committee had significant consequences within the Republican Party. In November 2021, the Wyoming Republican Party voted to revoke Cheney's membership. In February 2022, the Republican National Committee formally censured Cheney and fellow committee member Adam Kinzinger, characterizing the January 6 investigation as a persecution of "ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse."

CNN reported on how the relationship between Liz Cheney and her father Dick Cheney informed her decision to confront Trump. One year after the Capitol attack, the former vice president accompanied his daughter to the House floor on January 6, 2022, in a gesture that underscored the family's shared commitment to constitutional principles.

2022 Primary Defeat

Cheney sought re-election in 2022 but faced a formidable challenge in the Republican primary from Harriet Hageman, a Cheyenne attorney who received the endorsement of Donald Trump. The primary became one of the most closely watched races in the 2022 midterm cycle, widely viewed as a referendum on Trump's influence within the Republican Party and on Cheney's decision to break with him.

On August 16, 2022, Cheney lost the primary to Hageman in a landslide, receiving just 28.9% of the vote. In her concession speech, Cheney invoked Abraham Lincoln's loss of a Senate race in 1858 and stated her intention to continue working to prevent Trump from returning to the presidency.

Hageman subsequently won the general election and succeeded Cheney in the House. In December 2025, Hageman announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Cynthia Lummis.

Post-Congressional Career

After leaving Congress in January 2023, Cheney joined the University of Virginia Center for Politics as a professor of practice, teaching courses related to constitutional governance and democratic institutions.

Cheney published a memoir recounting her experiences during the January 6 investigation and the broader struggle within the Republican Party. She also embarked on a national speaking tour, appearing at universities and public forums to discuss threats to democratic governance.

In 2024, Cheney made the notable decision to endorse Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, in the presidential election, placing opposition to Trump above partisan loyalty. She actively campaigned for Harris, appearing at events across the country. Harris was ultimately unsuccessful in the general election.

In 2025, Cheney continued to make public appearances. In September, she spoke at the Pritzker School, where she discussed defending democracy and the transformation of the Republican Party under Trump. In January 2026, she addressed an audience in Sonoma, California, urging attendees to get involved in the midterm election process.

In May 2025, Cheney gave a talk in Anchorage, Alaska, where she appeared to tease the possibility of a future political run.

Personal Life

Cheney is married to Philip Perry, an attorney who served as General Counsel of the United States Department of Homeland Security during the George W. Bush administration. The couple have five children.

Cheney's younger sister, Mary Cheney, is openly gay and has been active in LGBT advocacy. The sisters' differing public positions on same-sex marriage became a source of public family tension during Liz Cheney's 2014 Senate campaign.

In November 2025, Cheney's father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, died. A funeral service was held at which both former President George W. Bush and Liz Cheney delivered tributes. In her eulogy, Cheney recounted her father's final words and emphasized his dedication to the Constitution over partisan considerations.

Recognition

In January 2025, President Joe Biden awarded Cheney the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second-highest civilian honor in the United States, in recognition of her work on the January 6 Committee and her defense of constitutional principles. Biden also issued Cheney a pardon from potential future prosecution, a preemptive measure that reflected concerns about possible retribution from the incoming Trump administration.

Cheney's work on the January 6 Committee drew attention from legal scholars, historians, and the media. Her willingness to break with her party over the events of January 6 was noted as one of the most significant acts of intraparty dissent in modern American political history.

Legacy

Cheney's political career encapsulates a broader tension within the Republican Party between its traditional establishment wing—characterized by hawkish foreign policy, fiscal conservatism, and institutional norms—and the populist movement that coalesced around Donald Trump. As the daughter of one of the most influential vice presidents in American history, Cheney initially seemed positioned to carry forward the Bush–Cheney legacy within the party. Her rapid rise to the third-ranking position in House Republican leadership by 2019 reflected the strength of that institutional base.

However, Cheney's break with Trump over January 6 represented a rupture that proved irreconcilable with the direction of the Republican Party's base. Her removal from leadership, the revocation of her Wyoming Republican Party membership, her censure by the RNC, and her landslide primary defeat together illustrated the extent to which the party had reoriented around loyalty to Trump.

The Guardian assessed that while Trump ended Cheney's career as an elected Republican, the Cheney family's influence continued to linger within certain elements of Republican foreign policy and governance. Cheney herself has stated her intention to remain engaged in public life, whether through political campaigns, educational work, or advocacy for constitutional governance. Her post-congressional career as a professor and public speaker has kept her visible in national discourse about the state of American democracy.