Washington DC - Former Representative Liz Cheney responded after President-elect Donald Trump suggested she and other members of the congressional committee that investigated the January 6 Capitol riots should be thrown in jail.

In a recent interview on MSNBC's Meet the Press, Trump repeated his unfounded claim that members of the committee – which he said consisted of "thugs" and "creeps" – had "deleted and destroyed all evidence" that would have absolved him.

He specifically called out Mississippi Rep. Benny Johnson – a Democrat who served as the committee's chairman – and Cheney, boldly declaring, "For what they did, honestly, they should go to jail."

In a statement provided to The New York Times, Cheney insisted that Trump "lied" about the committee and argued there would be "no conceivably appropriate factual or constitutional basis" to prosecute its members.

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"Here is the truth: Donald Trump attempted to overturn the 2020 presidential election and seize power," Cheney said. "He mobilized an angry mob and sent them to the United States Capitol, where they attacked police officers, invaded the building, and halted the official counting of electoral votes.

"Trump watched on television as police officers were brutally beaten, and the Capitol was assaulted, refusing for hours to tell the mob to leave."

She went on to describe the riots as "the worst breach of our Constitution by any president in our nation’s history" and said Trump's suggestion that the committee members should be jailed is "a continuation of his assault on the rule of law and the foundations of our republic."

After the Capitol riots, Cheney became an outspoken Trump critic, and during the 2024 presidential race, she endorsed and campaigned with his Democratic challenger, Kamala Harris.

Trump has openly admonished her over the years, once going as far as to suggest that she should face a firing squad for her policy views.

The former president also spent much of his campaign vowing to seek "retribution" on his political rivals once he took office, creating a real concern for officials like Cheney.

During his interview with MSNBC, Trump also pledged to pardon supporters involved in the Capitol riots on "day one" as he believes they are victims of a "very nasty system."