On Tuesday night, it was already dark when Liz Cheney realized that her Wyoming primary defeat had ended in defeat. Despite gaining a significant number of Democrat crossover vote votes, Cheney lost almost 40 points to Harriet Hageman.
It was obvious that excuses were being made immediately. According to the media and Cheney herself, the loss was wholly about her unwillingness to suggest the 2020 election was stolen, a narrative countered by Brian Kemp’s blowout primary win in Georgia. Cheney lost because of her complete disregard for her constituents and chose to obsess about Donald Trump on January 6th. As I observed the day after, Cheney’s supporters had learned nothing.
That became apparent after Hageman claimed on Sean Hannity’s show that the defeated Wyoming congresswoman left her a short voicemail that didn’t include a concession. Immediately, Cheney’s camp ran to the press to proclaim that was a lie, and the usual suspects swallowed the bait whole.
This is a very small but important thing.
It is not a habitual act of lying. It’s habitual. Say anything at all — true or untrue — so long as it wins you MAGApplause.
For being caught telling such a shaming lie, there is no price. https://t.co/tsLMhdazNK
— Stephen Hayes (@stephenfhayes) August 18, 2022
The story here is that Hageman said she received a “two-second” voicemail from Cheney that didn’t mention a concession. A tense fit of fury saw the Cheney camp run to Politico to provide a recording purporting that it was Cheney’s voicemail, which contained a concession. That led Stephen Hayes, who was just salivating to have his priors confirmed, to launch into a rant about how Hageman is a liar who is just out seeking “MAGApplause.”
This was obviously a totally unfair portrayal of Hageman. Hageman spent her campaign focused on Wyoming’s issues, while Cheney dazzled Washington with his political stunts. Hayes didn’t care about that context, though, instead seeking to paint her as some mindless Trump-loving zombie.
Let’s take a guess at the ending of this story.
HAGEMAN’s campaign has sent their own video to me showing that the voicemail audio only got “Howdy Harriet.” The voicemail had more time on it but that’s all the audio that got through to Hageman.
It is possible that technical issues or problems with cell phone service are at play in regard to the Cheney concessions message pic.twitter.com/JTtICQ7eXi
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) August 18, 2022
The accusation against Hageman was first made to me by a voicemail cut. I thought it was a matter of convenience, so I didn’t rush out and label her a liar. There was an entirely reasonable explanation, and it only took Politio a few moments to find the whole story. It is absurd that she would lie about such a thing. It’s amazing, think about it. If she were going to accuse Cheney of not calling to concede, wouldn’t it make sense to just say she never received a call at all? It should have been clear.
Hageman was able to save the voicemail, and she was able to say exactly what she meant. Cheney called and said “Howdy, Harriet” with nothing but blank space and background chatter after that. There are two options. Cheney created this and either gave Politico an inaccurate recording, or it was due to technical difficulties. Either way, Hageman wasn’t lying.
The pro-Cheney segment of the GOP, or what’s left of it, is so tiring. The partisans refuse to admit that the queen of England is a likable hack who prefers to support Democrats rather than deal with voters’ concerns. Hayes and the like are constantly looking to blame everyone else, and it’s just pathetic. Hageman can be described as a Republican generic candidate. Her character is admirable. Yet, even she isn’t acceptable because this isn’t really about being Trump. It’s about the dying gasps of the neoconservative movement.
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