Dick Cheney to back Harris for president 

Former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney, who served with former President George W. Bush, said Friday that he will support Vice President Harris in the November election.

Cheney issued a statement confirming he would back the Democratic nominee over former President Trump, hours after his daughter, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), told an audience in Texas that he would be voting for Harris.

The former vice president said in the statement that Americans “have a duty” to defend the Constitution, regardless of political party.

“In our nation’s 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” he wrote. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He can never be trusted with power again.”

“As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution,” he added. “That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.”

The Hill has reached out to the Trump campaign for a response.

Liz Cheney, who served on the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, originally shared the news with The Atlantic’s Mark Leibovich at the Texas Tribune Festival.

The former lawmaker announced earlier this week that she will also vote for Harris, despite being a lifelong conservative.

The Wyoming representative was one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6 riot and his efforts to remain in power after losing to President Biden. Cheney lost her seat in the 2022 midterms to Rep. Harriet Hageman (R), who was backed by the former president.

Ahead of that election, Dick Cheney cut an ad calling Trump a coward for refusing to accept his election loss.

“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” Cheney said in the ad. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He is a coward. A real man wouldn’t lie to his supporters. He lost his election, and he lost big. I know it. He knows it, and deep down, I think most Republicans know.”

Liz Cheney, who has been among Trump’s biggest critics in the Republican Party, revealed her support for Harris during an event at Duke University on Wednesday, saying that people in swing states this year don’t have the “luxury” of writing in candidates.

She added, “as a conservative, as someone who believes in and cares about the Constitution, I have thought deeply about this, and because of the danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump but I will be voting for Kamala Harris.”

Trump went after Liz Cheney in March, calling for her to face prosecution over allegations that she withheld evidence from the Jan. 6 committee investigation.

“Lying in all caps doesn’t make it true, Donald. You know you and your lawyers have long had the evidence,” Cheney responded at the time.

Cheney’s father was a reviled figure among Democrats, particularly over his role in the Iraq War.

“Who’s Liz Cheney?” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in an emailed statement to The Hill Friday, following the announcement.

Updated at 6:00 p.m. EDT.