PHOENIX — The lawyer for an Arizona man who took part in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol while sporting face paint, no shirt and a furry hat with horns is offering to have his client testify at former President Donald Trump’s upcoming impeachment trial.

Lawyer Albert Watkins said he ...

PHOENIX (AP) - The lawyer for an Arizona man who took part in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol while sporting face paint, no shirt and a furry hat with horns is offering to have his client testify at former President Donald Trump’s upcoming impeachment trial.

Lawyer Albert Watkins said ...

The Trump-McCarthy meeting takes place less than two weeks before the Senate impeachment trial, and a year before potentially divisive GOP primaries.

       

Rep. Matt Gaetz fired off a barrage of insults against his colleague Liz Cheney during a rally in her home state of Wyoming on Thursday — a raw embodiment of the cleavage across the Republican Party following President Donald Trump's exit from office.

Gaetz's rally flouted Republican leadership's appeal to temper the intraparty conflict. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy urged members of his caucus Wednesday to lay off the attacks on each other.

But Gaetz held back no punches as he attacked his colleague.

"Defeat Liz Cheney in this upcoming election, and Wyoming will bring Washington to its knees," he told a group of hundreds of spectators, many of whom did not wear masks. "How can you call yourself a representative when you don't represent the will of the people? That's what all the neocons ask about the Arab dictators. I figure maybe we ought to ask the same question of a beltway bureaucrat turned fake cow girl that supported an impeachment that is deeply unpopular in the state of Wyoming."

Gaetz revealed his intention to campaign against Cheney after she and nine other House Republicans voted to impeach Trump for inciting an insurrection on the Capitol. The measure was the most bipartisan impeachment in U.S. history. But the move against a president who has become a rousing figure for his party sparked vitriol, with calls for Cheney's ouster from her leadership position among the caucus' right flank.

But talk of impeachment made only a glancing appearance in Gaetz's rally Thursday. The congressman mostly opted to portray Cheney as in cahoots with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democrats like President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to sustain a status quo that works for Washington at the expense of main street America. He accused Cheney of being out of touch with the cowboy values of her home state of Wyoming, calling himself a supporter of "prairie populism."

"The truth is that the establishment in both political parties have teamed up to screw our fellow Americans for generations," Gaetz said. "The private insider club of Joe Biden, Mitch McConnell, Mitt Romney, Nancy Pelosi and Liz Cheney, they want to return our government to its default setting: enriching them."

The claim that Cheney and her Democratic counterparts are batting for the same team came in contrast with the congresswoman's simultaneous introduction Thursday of legislation challenging Biden's recent executive order on energy production.

Gaetz also attacked Cheney for the role her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, played in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He disparagingly called Liz Cheney a "neocon," saying she advocated unnecessary wars in the Middle East.

"The neocons say we got to fight them abroad so we don't have to fight them at home," Gaetz said. "I was going to say that maybe we ought to fight the neocons at home so we don't have to fight them in Washington, D.C. But that's problem, isn't it, because the neocons are home at Washington, D.C."

"The real cowboys, I guess, fought the Indians so they could use the land, but what are America's soldiers even fighting for that Liz Cheney sends around the world?" he added. "Places that most Americans couldn't even point to on a map."

Much of the event followed Trump's rally playbook, with talking points mirroring the former president's bombastic public comments. Trump frequently expressed his contempt for Cheney while he was president, telling his supporters shortly before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6: "We’ve got to get rid of the weak congresspeople, the ones that aren’t any good, the Liz Cheneys of the world."

At one point, Gaetz even echoed Trump's disdain for developing countries in a dig at Congress, saying: "A nation that sends its best to fight in the worst nations in the world should not send its worst to be its representatives in the United States Congress."

Cheney's team has largely brushed off Gaetz' attacks, with one member of her office telling CNN this week: "Rep. Gaetz can leave his beauty bag at home. In Wyoming, the men don't wear make-up." (The dig is an apparent reference to Gaetz's use of makeup in an HBO documentary about his time in office).

In a statement to POLITICO, former Wyoming State Rep. Amy Edmonds put it equally bluntly Thursday: "Wyoming doesn’t like it when outsiders come into our state and try to tell us what to do."

The Capitol needs permanent fencing and backup forces continuously stationed nearby, the Capitol Police chief said Thursday, immediately sparking objections from lawmakers concerned about creating a fortress that distances the public from the Legislative Branch.

In a lengthy statement, acting chief Yogananda Pittman pledged to work with lawmakers to permanently beef up security in and around the complex, where thousands of National Guard troops have been deployed since the Jan. 6 insurrection.

“In light of recent events, I can unequivocally say that vast improvements to the physical security infrastructure must be made to include permanent fencing, and the availability of ready, back-up forces in close proximity to the Capitol,” Pittman said.

Lawmakers from both parties immediately objected to the police chief's recommendations, noting that they have not received any threat assessments that would suggest permanent fencing would be necessary. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser also said the city "will not accept" permanent fencing or additional security forces “being a long-term fixture in D.C.”

Even before the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the police chief said, security experts recommended the Capitol be better fortified, and a 2006 security assessment recommended permanent perimeter fencing.

Separately, top Democrats in Congress are calling for extra money to help lawmakers protect themselves. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said additional security for members will likely require more funding “when the enemy is within the House of Representatives — a threat that members are concerned about — in addition to what is happening outside.”

“It means that we have members of Congress that want to bring guns on the floor and have threatened violence on other members of Congress," Pelosi said during her weekly press conference.

Freshmen lawmakers like Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) have pledged to carry firearms on Capitol grounds, clashing with plans to install metal detectors at the entrance of the House chamber. A CNN review of Facebook posts found that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) expressed support for executing prominent Democrats, including liking a January 2019 comment that said “a bullet to the head would be quicker“ to remove Pelosi.

Pelosi noted that lawmakers can dip into a pot of funding called the Members’ Representational Allowance, which is intended to help each office carry out its duties and meet the needs of constituents. But they “shouldn’t have to,” she said.

Pelosi has charged retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré with leading a comprehensive security review, to last until at least March 5. She said Thursday that Honoré briefed her on his initial assessment, which included “operational readiness, interagency cooperation, security infrastructure and the morale and readiness of institutional staff.”

The agencies charged with protecting the Capitol have "informally shared information on emergency needs" with appropriators in both chambers, a House Democratic aide said.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), who chairs the Legislative Branch spending panel that oversees Capitol Police funding, said Thursday that "there’s obviously significant costs attached to the security footprint" and that appropriators are "working through a supplemental request from Capitol Police and Sergeant at Arms right now.“

During a Congressional Progressive Caucus call with reporters on Thursday, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said lawmakers have purchased bulletproof vests and other security protections "because they simply do not feel comfortable with our colleagues, which is a very, very sad statement."

“We need more funds specifically dedicated to this," Jayapal said, "and we need to have more clarity on what funds we can use. I don't think people should have to raise money from their campaigns to pay for the security that is part of this horrible environment that Republicans have fueled and incited.“

There would likely be bipartisan support for a security funding package. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), the top Republican appropriator in the Senate, agreed that lawmakers should review the issue and respond if necessary.

Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), a senior Republican appropriator, said GOP lawmakers have "been open to additional money for security procedures, if you will, cameras, things like that."

“I don't have any problem with having a serious discussion about security," Cole said.

In the days following the insurrection, federal law enforcement agencies constructed 10-foot barriers with razor wire around the Capitol complex, and about 7,000 troops remain on duty to stand guard.

Around 5,000 troops are expected to remain in Washington through mid-March due to ongoing security threats, including the possibility of mass demonstrations during former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial, which begins the week of Feb. 8.

The deployment of the entire D.C. National Guard has already been extended until the end of March.

Heather Caygle and Sarah Ferris contributed to this report.