ArcaMax

Back in the days when I was a moderate Republican, I still found Liz Cheney too far right-leaning for my tastes. And that went for her dad, former Vice President Dick Cheney, as well.

Even today, I may not agree with her on this issue or that, but we're on the same page on the primal importance of preserving our democracy. And this year, the sanctity of the vote is issue No. 1 through 10. Cheney has won enormous respect for refusing to cave into MAGA's assault on the democratic process, not to mention decency.

Cheney and her father have come right out and endorsed Kamala Harris for president. They're not telling conservatives to simply withhold their votes in protest. They're not suggesting that conservatives appalled by Donald Trump's conduct find some other third-party candidate to support. No more that Trump's just bad. It's that he is downright unacceptable to real conservatives.

To rid America of this toxic character and destructive politics, Republicans must get their clocks cleaned in November, not only at the presidential level but also in Congress. Cheney fears that if Republicans retain control of the House, they'll be able to certify the results in Trump's favor, even if he loses.

Speaking last weekend in Madison, Wisconsin, Cheney took an extra step. She said that the Republican Party may at this point not be fixable. Conservatives may need a new party.

What does she envision might happen should revulsion to MAGA sink Republicans in November? "I don't think it will just simply be, well, the Republican Party is going to put up a new slate of candidates and off to the races," she said. "I think far too much has happened that's too damaging."

Cheney is right that conservatives need a new party. MAGA remains unapologetic of the violent Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and even now is seeking to undermine the electoral process in battleground states.

The demand in Georgia to require a hand count of ballots in addition to the usual machine count suddenly materialized about six weeks before Election Day and only when polls showed that the state was possibly in play. The motive is clearly to delay the counting of votes and therefore give Trump more opportunity to sow chaos should the results not go his way.

Cheney has plenty of company among conservatives. More than 100 former national security officials from Republican administrations and Republican members of Congress have signed a letter endorsing Harris and calling Trump "unfit to serve." They include former defense secretary and senator from Nebraska Chuck Hagel, and ex-CIA directors Michael Hayden and William Webster. (Trump's apparent ease in playing Vladimir Putin's lackey at the expense of the Western alliance has shocked the security establishment.)

It's thus disappointing that some seemingly good Republicans, like Ohio's Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, won't join them in going the extra mile. After showing great humanity defending the Haitian migrants under scurrilous attack in Springfield, he still supports Trump for president.

After I left the party, there remained select Republican candidates I'd voted for. Even now I can identify a few good ones who don't bow and scrape to MAGA. Problem is, their election could preserve Republicans' House majority, which stays trapped under MAGA's heel.

I'm not even shocked by the candidacy of a self-described "Black Nazi" for governor of North Carolina, a crackpot whom Trump crowned as "Martin Luther King on steroids." It's all part of the never-ending political freak show.

Liz Cheney is right. Conservatives must help flatten the insanity that MAGA has imposed on the nation. They can then start again with a new party. Maybe I'll join.

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Follow Froma Harrop on Twitter @FromaHarrop. She can be reached at fharrop@gmail.com. To find out more about Froma Harrop and read features by other Creators writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators webpage at www.creators.com.

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