Embrace of alternative facts scary

No better example exists of congressional Republican degeneration than comparison of Liz Cheney with Harriet Hageman, who trounced Cheney in the 2022 Wyoming Republican Primary by more than 30 points. Cheney occupied the third-highest position in House Republican leadership before being ostracized by Republicans for becoming the rare congressional Republican to stand up to former President Donald Trump.

Cheney should be the No. 1 Hero of anyone who wants to save our badly threatened democracy, whatever one’s political stripes. In contrast, Hageman accused FBI Director Christopher Wray at his recent US House hearing of having “personally worked to weaponize the FBI against conservatives.” Other Republicans made similar accusations. This is ridiculous since Wray was appointed by Trump and is a lifelong Republican and member of the right-wing Federalist Society. Fortunately, Wray practices fairness.

My brother, a rock-ribbed Republican, and I had continual civil, often disagreeing dialogue before his 2006 death. He agreed with Cheney in policy much more than I, but if he were still alive, I’m sure we’d be completely united on praising Cheney’s efforts to save our democracy.

Sue Lani Madsen proposed joining the Braver Angels group for cross-party dialogue (Spokesman-Review, 7/13/23). My brother and I would have gladly joined before 2016. But Madsen’s proposal is problematic with no agreement even on basic facts anymore, a problem my brother and I never had.

Are Republicans’ “alternative facts” responsible for their near-unanimous support of either Trump or Ron DeSantis, both “wannabe” dictators, for President in 2024? It’s scary!