Former Republican Liz Cheney (R-WY) praised Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday, calling her speech at the Democratic National Convention a “speech that Ronald Reagan could have given.”

 

Cheney, a Wyoming Republican and vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, praised Harris’ Chicago speech last month.

 

“Look at the speech by Vice President Harris, for example, in last year’s Democratic Convention — it is a Ronald Reagan could have given that speech. To ABC News, Cheney said: “It’s a speech George Bush could have given.”

 

In her address, the vice president presented an image of a true believer in American military might — vowing to ensure that “we keep America’s promise for the next generation” Cheney said.

 

 

“It’s very much an embrace and an understanding of the exceptional nature of this great nation. A love of America. A recognition that America is a special place,” Cheney said.

 

The Democrats Convention in Chicago on Thursday was another forum for Never Trumpers, including Republican Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), who – like Cheney – has not been shy in attacking his former party.

 

Cheney was removed from her leadership role by being ousted as chair of the House Republican Conference in 2019 — to be replaced with Trump supporter Elise Stefanik (R-NY) — after lambasting Trump’s actions on January 6. She was also later the vice chair of the House Select Committee on events surrounding attacks in Benghazi. Cheney was defeated in her primary race by Trump-backed candidate Harriet Hageman in 2022.

 

“The trash-talking of the United States of America very much is part of the message that Donald Trump is pushing, and so at the end of the day, I think it’s important for people to recognize he’s not a conservative,” Cheney stressed.

 

Cheney also disclosed that her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, would back Harris — a development that has again drawn scorn from supporters of Trump. 

 

Cheney said she spoke with Harris “in the process of doing this” when asked, but did not say more about that conversation. Cheney, who had voted for Ronald Reagan in 1984 as her first vote ever — duly noted by the host John Berman – hit Trump for deserting traditional Republican values.

 

Cheney contended that “there is simply no comparison between the two, and thankfully President Trump hasn’t tried to emulate them,” urging her Republican colleagues to reject any assessment of policies bearing similarities in order more fully appreciate what they argue are expansive dangers posed by Trump.