Former GOP Representative Liz Cheney has taken aim at fellow Republicans for their silence on Donald Trump’s recent comments regarding the Civil War. Trump argued during a campaign event in Newton, Iowa, that the bloodshed and sacrifices during the war, fought to end slavery, were unnecessary. He specifically questioned whether Abraham Lincoln could have avoided the conflict through diplomacy.
“So many mistakes were made. See, there was something I think could have been negotiated, to be honest with you,” Trump said. “I think you could have negotiated that. All the people died. So many people died.”
Trump did not say how he would have prevented the conflict, which he also called “so fascinating.”
“It was, I don’t know, it was just different,” Trump said of the war. “I just find it – I’m so attracted to seeing it.”
Trump’s remarks, just over a week before the Iowa caucuses, have ignited a new controversy for the GOP.
Cheney, known for her outspoken criticism of Trump, took to social media to express her dismay, directly addressing Republicans who continue to support the former president. She raised pointed questions about which aspects of the Civil War could have been subject to negotiation and challenged GOP members to defend Trump’s perspective, especially considering the Republican Party’s traditionally celebrated association with Lincoln as a heroic figure for preserving the Union and opposing slavery.
“Which part of the Civil War ‘could have been negotiated’? The slavery part? The secession part? Whether Lincoln should have preserved the Union?” Cheney queried. “Question for members of the GOP – the party of Lincoln – who have endorsed Donald Trump: How can you possibly defend this?”
This unexpected focus on the Civil War has permeated the GOP primary trail, with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley previously skirting the issue of slavery as the war’s main cause. Trump’s recent comments, however, have intensified the debate within the party.
