DALLAS — Their friendship started on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives when Liz Cheney was still a Republican congresswoman from Wyoming.
But it was strengthened on January 6, 2021, when the U.S. Capitol came under attack.
That day, the staunchly conservative Cheney and Congressman Colin Allred, a Democrat from Dallas, found common ground in a belief that a senator from Texas held some responsibility for what happened.
“Ted Cruz was one of the leaders of that in the Senate,” Cheney told WFAA.
She sat beside Allred in what was their first joint interview since she publicly endorsed him in his race against Cruz.
“The choice for the people of Texas is just a very clear one,” Cheney said. “When there’s a candidate who is as competent and somebody of the kind of character as Colin, I think it’s very important that we support him.”
Allred said he was honored with Cheney’s backing and hopes it sends a signal to Texas Republicans.
“I want principled conservatives in this state to know that I want them to be a part of this campaign and that they are welcome in our coalition. I’ll be their senator as well,” he said.
Polls show Allred behind Cruz, but the race has tightened.
The latest poll of likely voters from Emerson College/Nexstar has the margin between them at 4 percent. The margin of error is 3.8 percent.
While Cheney praised Allred, she openly criticized Cruz for his actions following the 2020 presidential election and a “willingness to do whatever Donald Trump wanted him to do.”
“[He] proposed this completely unconstitutional plan that would have resulted in throwing out electoral votes, throwing out the votes of millions of Americans,” Cheney said.
“You can’t trust Ted Cruz. He’s going to say whatever he has to say to serve his own political purpose,” she said. “But I’ve worked with Colin. We were on different sides of the aisle, different sides of the issues, but at the end of the day, I know he has the interest of the people of Texas first and foremost.”
Cheney is not the only party flip in this race.
In March, Cruz launched an ad featuring Democrats who endorsed him, including sheriffs along the border and business owners across the state.
More recently, the Harris County district attorney, a Democrat, also endorsed Cruz.
Allred said it’s an effort by Cruz to “distract from his record of being the most extreme senator in the country over his 12 years in the Senate.”
“There are folks in Congress who are trying to work across the aisle. We're trying to get things done. We're trying to advance causes for the people we represent. And then there are folks like Ted Cruz who no matter how reasonable the effort is who, no matter how productive the policy discussion could be, will never be a part of it because that's not what he's there to do,” Allred said. “What he's there to do is to drive division and to get himself attention. I'm the exact opposite I’m the most bipartisan Texas in Congress.”
But in an August interview with WFAA’s Inside Texas Politics, Cruz dismissed that label.
“He gets left wings group to say that, but it’s an empty boast. His voting record was identical to Nancy Pelosi,” Cruz claimed.
The Cruz campaign dismissed Cheney’s endorsement, saying no one takes her seriously.
“[Cheney] was overwhelmingly rejected by voters in Wyoming just like Colin Allred will be by Texas voters,” a Cruz campaign spokesperson said. “She’s a loser and soon he will be too, but hey, it takes one to know one.”
Cheney has also endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris over former President Donald Trump.
Harris has said she would name a Republican to her cabinet if she wins.
Cheney told WFAA that a cabinet position is not something she has not discussed with Harris.
She defended her decision to endorse Democrats saying in her mind she’s not abandoning Conservative values but instead clinging to what she calls the most conservative value of all – being faithful to the constitution.
“When I think about my time in Congress, the most fruitful and productive exchanges that I had were with people like Colin. We could find each other on the floor and say, tell me why you think that, and I'll tell you why I think this and let's talk about it and let's exchange views and let's learn from each other,” she said. “I hope we can get back to that place.”
Colin Allred, Liz Cheney extended interview:
Ted Cruz extended interview: