Former Wyoming GOP representative Liz Cheney joins the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics after being ousted from Congress last year by a Trump-backed candidate.
Cheney lost her congressional seat last year after drawing the ire of former President Donald Trump who supported a primary challenger that ousted the one-time No. 3 Republican in Congress.
Her loss was a clear sign of the former president’s grip on his party, as Republicans who disagree with Trump find the party increasingly inhospitable.
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What will Cheney do?
Cheney will serve as a practice professor for UVA in an inaugural appointment. According to a press release, she will teach until the fall of 2023.
Her duties include conducting university-wide lectures and guest lectures, and contributing to the center’s political research.
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What does Cheney say?
“I am delighted to be joining the UVA Center for Politics as a practice professor. Preserving our constitutional republic is the most important work of our time, and the youth of our country will play a vital role in that effort,” Cheney said.
“I look forward to working with students and colleagues at the Center to continue the important work they and others are doing at the University of Virginia to improve the health of democracy here and around the world.”
Why did Cheney lose her seat?
Cheney lost last year’s Wyoming primary to Trump-backed Republican Harriet Hageman after Trump retaliated against Cheney for voting to impeach Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot.
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Cheney served as chairman of the House Republican Conference until May 2021 — the third-highest GOP post in the House. she was removed from her position after Republicans removed her from leadership for denouncing Trump’s involvement in the January 6 uprising.
As vice chair of the January 6 committee investigating Trump’s role in the uprising, Cheney continued her public persona as the former president’s most prominent Republican critic.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ex-GOP Rep. Cheney, who lost to the Trump-backed Republican, to join UVA
