Donald Trump, despite multiple criminal investigations against him and a staged coup in his recent past, continues to have a hold on the Republican Party. However, recent polls show that hold may not be as strong as it once was, with some GOP voters ready for new party leadership. Those are the voters Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WI) are courting on Fox News with ads featuring her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney.
Fox News viewers will this week see former Vice President Dick Cheney look into the camera and excoriate former President Donald Trump as the greatest threat to the country "in our nation's 246-year history." https://t.co/g8a1PJMZVV
— CNN (@CNN) August 9, 2022
Neither Cheney are heroes to anyone on the left, albeit Liz Cheney’s decision to join the Jan. 6 committee has bolstered some respect in the Democratic Party. But Dick Cheney was once an elected leader, people Republican voters continued to approve of even after former President George W. Bush left office. The elder Cheney talks directly to GOP voters ready to move on from Trump in a new campaign ad for his daughter, and her campaign is running it on Fox News.
According to CNN:
‘The ad spots started airing Tuesday morning on Fox News and will continue throughout the week. They are scheduled to air twice each day on the morning show “Fox & Friends” and once each day on Sean Hannity’s prime time program — two shows Trump has had a close relationship with over the years.’
“In our nation’s 246 year history there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our Republic than Donald Trump.” Dick Cheney pic.twitter.com/erBPBNy8ah
— Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) August 4, 2022
Liz Cheney’s will be challenged by far-right candidate Harriett Hageman, a Trump-backed primary challenger and election denier. Recent polls have shown Cheney down by as much as 30 points, making her decision to put country over party, and country over self, even more clear. If she has any chance of winning, it will be with older Republicans who remember Dick Cheney and prefer him over Trump.
Cheney campaign spokesman Jeremy Adler said that:
‘It’s important not only for Fox News viewers, but for the network’s hosts and top executives, to hear former Vice President Cheney’s warning about the ongoing danger Donald Trump and his lies post to our constitutional republic.’
#Fox CPAC POLL: President Trump 69.1% DeSantis 23.7% @FoxNews @Jeff_Paul reporting. 👍👍😀
— David Benjamin (@thetoyman1) August 6, 2022
As a strategy, airing ads on Fox News could prove useful to Republicans in the future as Trump’s popularity grows more stale. Despite 70 percent of voters polled at CPAC still backing Trump, that number is down significantly from his peak approval ratings in his own party prior to January 6, 2021. As Trump’s popularity continues to wane, other GOP candidates may find it worth the cost of ad time to try to reach those voters ready to put Trump far behind them.
‘The strategy could be replicated in the future to pierce the information chokehold that Fox News and other right-wing media outlets have on the Republican voting base.’
Two House Democrats — from New Jersey and Minnesota — are appealing to members of their own party in Wyoming to "consider" changing their affiliations ahead of that state's contentious Republican primary in order to back incumbent Rep. Liz Cheney. https://t.co/dMZwtxHFdZ
— ABC News (@ABC) August 9, 2022
