Is Liz Cheney about to get the boot?

IS LIZ OUT OF A LEADERSHIP JOB? Honestly, we don’t know yet. But what is clear right now is that there is a coordinated effort by KEVIN MCCARTHY to box her out. The Republican leader is signaling that if anyone wants to try to force another vote to oust her from the post, he’s not planning to defend her anymore. McCarthy has been refusing to appear with Cheney at press conferences for months and, according to our sources, recently declined to give her a moderating role at the GOP retreat in Orlando, even as he allowed others in leadership to head up panels. It’s also notable that one of McCarthy’s new besties in Congress, Republican Study Committee Chair JIM BANKS (R-Ind.), who has conference chair ambitions of his own, went on record over the weekend criticizing her. SO WHAT’S MCCARTHY’S BEEF? The leader has suggested that Cheney’s jabs at DONALD TRUMP are a distraction and accused her of not focusing on policy. That’s ironic because policy seems to be what Cheney talks about most. It’s only when reporters ask her about Trump that she says what she always has: that the party should move on from him. Also, McCarthy has done plenty on his own to stoke the controversy, including dodging questions about whether she should be in leadership and openly tagging her as selfish. There’s also this question: If Republicans want to focus on retaking the House, is it smart politics to basically invite an intra-party blow-up — one that reminds swing voters that the party increasingly won’t tolerate anyone who doesn’t pledge allegiance to Trump? That’s what Cheney types would ask.