Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) led the charge in the Senate to challenge the Electoral College results on Jan. 6. The plan was largely upended when a mob of former President Donald Trump's supporters breached the Capitol and delayed the vote. Hawley and Cruz still went through with their objections, but the push lost momentum and many of their colleagues bailed. Since then, the two senators have faced harsh criticism across the political spectrum, but Trump himself still appears to have their backs.
In an interview with Fox News' Lisa Boothe, who launched her podcast Monday, Trump pointed to Hawley and Cruz as two people who could lead the Republican Party going forward, though he didn't mention their roles in the Capitol riot. Hawley, Trump said, "has shown some real courage in going after big tech." As for Cruz, Trump said they "had it out for a while," because Cruz "got very, very ... rather violent and vicious" during the 2016 GOP primaries, but "it simmered down and he's been great."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Denmark scraps letters and its iconic red postboxesUnder the Radar Danish posties say ‘farvel’ to 400 years of tradition but can Royal Mail weather the storm?
-
What role will Trump play in the battle over Warner Bros. Discovery?Today’s Big Question Netflix and Paramount fight for the president’s approval
-
‘The menu’s other highlights smack of the surreal’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Benin thwarts coup attemptSpeed Read President Patrice Talon condemned an attempted coup that was foiled by the West African country’s army
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
UN Security Council backs Trump’s Gaza peace planSpeed Read The United Nations voted 13-0 to endorse President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to withdraw Israeli troops from Gaza
-
Chile picks leftist, far-right candidates for runoff voteSpeed Read The presidential runoff election will be between Jeannette Jara, a progressive from President Gabriel Boric’s governing coalition, and far-right former congressman José Antonio Kast
-
Venezuela mobilizes as top US warship nearsSpeed Read The largest and most advanced US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has entered the Caribbean and put Venezuela on high alert
-
Nigeria confused by Trump invasion threatSpeed Read Trump has claimed the country is persecuting Christians
