Imagine Cheney pressing the case against Trump not just in Jan. 6 committee hearings, but also doing it to his face. It’s unlikely it would ever truly make her a contender, but sometimes candidates run to try to shape the race in other ways. And given how little GOP primary voters are confronted with counterprogramming on Trump — both by virtue of our siloed conservative media and a lack of willingness by DeSantis, Pence, et. al., to truly go after Trump — Cheney might view that as a worthy path if she truly only aims to stop Trump.

There’s also the matter of what Cheney knows about what could lie ahead. The Jan. 6 committee vice chair is privy to all kinds of potential disclosures that could bear significantly on Trump’s political future. You’d think she’d have pushed for getting that stuff out when it still might’ve saved her in her primary, but the evidence-gathering is ongoing, as are law enforcement investigations involving Trump.

Put simply, there’s arguably nobody more studied in making the case against Trump than Cheney, and she might decide that’s her role to play in 2024 — to air all of this very publicly on the biggest political stage possible. Even if it doesn’t prevent Trump from winning the 2024 GOP nomination, it could matter for the general election.