Former President Donald Trump seems to have chosen a favored candidate in his bid to unseat Rep. Liz Cheney, one of his most vocal Republican critics that he’s called a RINO (Republican In Name Only).
The Associated Press spoke to a member of Trump’s inner circle, who asked to remain anonymous ahead of a formal announcement. Trump planning to endorse Wyoming attorney Harriet Hageman, according to the Trump confidant.
The source said that Hageman is preparing to launch a primary campaign against Cheney, the most prominent member of Congress to vote for Trump’s second impeachment.
The move marks Trump’s most significant endorsement to date. He is working to maintain his status as GOP kingmaker and exact revenge on those who voted to impeach him.
Trump has already endorsed a number of Republican challengers including Kelly Tshibaka, who is running against Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Alaska; Michigan State Rep. Steve Carra, who is trying to unseat longtime Rep. Fred Upton; former White House aide Max Miller, who is running against Rep. Anthony Gonzalez in Ohio; and Joe Kent, who is challenging Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler in Washington.
All voted for Trump’s second impeachment.
According to the AP, Trump met with Hageman last month. He was assessing the potential candidate pool, hoping an early endorsement would help to clear the field and prevent a crowded primary that might be advantageous to Cheney’s chances.
At least half-a-dozen other Republicans have already announced their intentions to run and it wasn’t immediately clear whether the news of Trump’s decision — which was first reported by Politico — would succeed in pushing them out.
They include state Sen. Anthony Bouchard, whose campaign was disrupted in May by the revelation that he impregnated a 14-year-old girl when he was 18; state Rep. Chuck Gray, a political radio commentator; and Darin Smith, an attorney with ties to the Christian Broadcasting Network and the conservative Family Research Council.
Hageman was an early supporter of Cheney’s unsuccessful attempt in 2013 and 2014 to oust popular U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi. The two have remained in touch, although it is unclear how close they are personally.
Hageman finished third in a six-way Republican gubernatorial primary in 2018, getting 21% of the vote. Former State Treasurer Mark Gordon won, followed by investor and Republican megadonor Foster Friess, whom had Trump endorsed.
Hageman grew up on a ranch near Fort Laramie in southeastern Wyoming. She holds undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Wyoming.
She’s listed as a senior attorney with the New Civil Liberties Alliance, a Washington, D.C.-based law firm that aims to protect “constitutional freedoms from violations by the administrative state,” according to its mission statement.
Her Cheyenne law firm touts its ties to Wyoming’s ranching industry, and Hageman has pursued cases regarding the limits on the power of the federal Bureau of Land Management.
She recently expressed support on Facebook for a new Texas law banning most abortions. She has also been praising the state’s coal mining industry.
Possibly foreshadowing the congressional race ahead, Hageman was the first in her 2018 campaign to go negative, criticizing one opponent as “anti-coal” and “obsessed with so-called green energy.”
Trump’s allies in Wyoming have been trying — unsuccessfully so far — to change state election law. They want next year’s primary to involve either ranked-choice voting or a runoff election . Such a big change would be costly and difficult to pull off by then, opponents of the changes say.
The AP reached out to Hageman for comment, but she didn’t respond to phone calls or messages on social media.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.