Liz Cheney is an American politician and attorney who now represents Wyoming’s at-large congressional district in the United States Congress. She worked as a corporate lawyer before entering politics. Cheney’s political career as a ‘Republican’ began during George W. Bush’s presidency. She is the third woman elected to the ‘House Republican Conference’ chair. Cheney is credited with generating jobs, lowering taxes, and developing the country’s petroleum, mining, and agriculture industries through conservative policies. Cheney was heavily chastised during her 2014 Senate campaign for her views on same-sex marriage and her ‘hawkish’ foreign policy positions. She eventually dropped out of school. Her personal life was exposed as a result of the political drama, and the nation observed her poor relationship with her sister. She is a member of the ‘University of Wyoming’s International Board of Advisors,’ the co-founder of the non-profit ‘Keep America Safe,’ and a former ‘Fox News’ analyst.
Childhood and Adolescence
Elizabeth Lynne Cheney was born on July 28, 1966, in Madison, Wisconsin, to former US Vice President Dick Cheney and novelist, academic, and former talk-show host Lynne Vincent. Mary Cheney, her younger sister, is involved in a number of political action groups.
Liz Cheney went to Casper, Wyoming, for her education. She attended ‘McLean High School,’ where she graduated in 1984 as a cheerleader. Cheney earned her bachelor’s degree from ‘Colorado College.’ Her senior thesis, titled ‘The Evolution of Presidential War Powers,’ was submitted in 1988. In 1996, she received her law degree from the ‘University of Chicago Law School.’ Cheney also attended the ‘Oriental Institute,’ where he studied Middle Eastern history.
Career of Liz Cheney
Before joining the ‘University of Chicago Law School,’ Cheney worked for 5 years as a staff member in the ‘United States Department of State.’ The ‘United States Agency for International Development’ was her next assignment. She left in 1993 to work for Armitage Associates LLP, a consulting firm. Cheney began her legal career after getting her Juris Doctor by working for the law firm ‘White & Case’ and the ‘International Finance Corporation.’ From 1999 to 2002, she worked as an international law attorney and consultant at the latter.
Cheney was the deputy assistant secretary of state for ‘Near Eastern Affairs’ at the ‘United States Department of State’ in 2002. According to ‘The New York Times,’ her assignment as an officer with the ‘United States Agency for International Development’ and stationed in Budapest and Warsaw was contrived to get her recruited at the agency. Colin Powell, the then-secretary of state, had recommended her, according to ‘State Department’ spokesperson Richard Boucher. She presided over the ‘Middle East Partnership Initiative’ in that position.
Liz Cheney resigned from her ‘State Department’ role in 2003 and sponsored the ‘W Stands for Women’ project to help her father’s re-election campaign in 2004. She was named principal deputy assistant secretary of state for ‘Near Eastern Affairs’ by the ‘US State Department’ in February 2005.
C. David Welch, the assistant secretary of state for ‘Near Eastern Affairs,’ led several collaborative efforts in the Middle East and Northern Africa to promote democracy and expand various opportunities, all of which Cheney supported as the coordinator for ‘Broader Middle East and North Africa Initiatives.’
Cheney was a key figure in the formation of the ‘Fund of the Future’ and the ‘Foundation of the Future,’ two semi-independent foundations. The foundations’ main goal was to help small enterprises and provide the media and democracy as much freedom as possible. She also gave her approval to a draft for a new Iraqi constitution.
In March 2006, the ‘Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs’ established the ‘Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group’ (ISOG), with Cheney as its leader. Later, the unit teamed up with the ‘International Republican Institute’ for a contentious grant scheme. The following month, the ‘New York Times’ slammed her work on Iran and Syria, claiming that the unit’s clandestine operations could spark a conflict. As a result, by May, the group had disbanded.
In June 2007, ‘Republican’ presidential candidate Fred Thompson named Cheney as one of three co-chairs of his campaign. Liz Cheney joined Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign as a senior foreign policy adviser on January 27, 2008.
Cheney spoke out against the law prohibiting gay marriages in a 2009 interview with ‘MSNBC.’ She even suggested that the federal government provide homosexual couples with extra-legal perks. Cheney argued that states, not the federal government, should decide on the matter, despite the fact that her stance was unclear and did not explicitly declare whether she backed homosexual marriages or not.
Cheney’s views on homosexuality sparked debate. With an ad made by the ‘American Principles Fund,’ a conservative group targeted her.
Many saw Cheney’s stance on homosexual marriages as a show of support for her sister, Mary, who was dating Heather Poe at the time. In 2012, the two married.
Cheney, neoconservative political scholar William Kristol, and political activist Deborah Burlingame formed the non-profit ‘Keep America Safe’ in October 2009. They were all members of the board of directors. The goal of the organization was to keep residents informed about national security issues. The foundation was heavily criticized, particularly by conservative lawyers. All information about the group was quickly removed from the internet.
In August 2011, Cheney published ‘In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir,’ which she co-wrote with her father.
Liz Cheney joined ‘Fox News’ in January 2012 as a guest host on ‘Hannity’ and ‘Fox News Sunday.’ The network canceled her contract in July 2013 after she declared her race for the ‘Senate’ in Wyoming as a ‘Republican,’ against the then-incumbent ‘Republican,’ Mike Enzi.
Cheney’s campaign was widely panned, owing in large part to a dramatic shift in her opinion toward same-sex weddings. She and Mary have never agreed on gay marriages, as she claimed on ‘Fox News Sunday,’ resulting in a feud between the two. The public learned about the Cheney family conflict, which had a significant impact on Cheney’s candidacy.
While Mary chastised her sister for rejecting gay marriages, their parents were cheerleaders for Cheney. They also attempted to clarify the sisters’ connection, claiming that Cheney had always admired and appreciated Mary’s family.
Meanwhile, the criticism aided Enzi’s campaign, and Cheney’s eventually faltered. She dropped her candidacy on January 6, 2014, citing family health difficulties as the reason.
After Cynthia Lummis announced her retirement from the role of United States Representative for Wyoming’s at-large congressional district in 2015, Cheney launched her candidacy for the job in 2016. Simon Kukes, a businessman in the oil industry, backed her campaign.
Cheney co-sponsored a bill to remove grey wolves from the ‘Endangered Species Act’ after taking office in January 2017. Cheney was named to the ‘Armed Services’ and ‘Natural Resources’ committees as the 115th ‘Congress’ (January 2017 to January 2019) began.
Liz Cheney was re-elected to the position without opposition in the November 2018 general election. The 116th ‘Congress’ ‘Republicans’ elected her chair of the ‘House Republican Conference’ (January 2019 to January 2021).
Personal & Family Life
Liz Cheney and Philip Perry, a partner at the law firm ‘Latham & Watkins,’ have been married since 1993. They are the parents of five children.
Estimated Net Worth
Liz Cheney net worth is estimated to be $7 million.