How was your weekend? Probably not as productive as Donald Trump’s. In the span of about 24 hours, the former president a) vowed to pardon any jailed Jan. 6 rioters, who stormed the Capitol in an attempt to overturn democracy; b) promoted unrest should he be prosecuted for crimes he may have committed; and c) straight-up admit he wanted ex-veep Mike Pence to “overturn the election” of 2020. Meanwhile, all you might done is shovel snow.
Trump’s comments — which, again, include confessing to a crime he’s previously tried to bury under an avalanche of voter fraud nonsense — sparked outrage, even from cronies like Lindsey Graham. Perhaps the most forceful pushback came from Liz Cheney, the longtime traditional Republican (and, lest we forget, daughter of one of the least-liked conservatives in American history), who has seen herself all but booted from the party for daring to stand up to Trump. Well, she’s still not backing down.
Trump uses language he knows caused the Jan 6 violence; suggests he’d pardon the Jan 6 defendants, some of whom have been charged with seditious conspiracy; threatens prosecutors; and admits he was attempting to overturn the election.
He’d do it all again if given the chance.
— Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) January 31, 2022
“Trump uses language he knows caused the Jan 6 violence; suggests he’d pardon the Jan 6 defendants, some of whom have been charged with seditious conspiracy; threatens prosecutors; and admits he was attempting to overturn the election,” Cheney wrote on Twitter, adding, ominously, “He’d do it all again if given the chance.”
Cheney’s ire wasn’t meant exclusively for Trump. It was also for fellow Republicans, most of whom have turned their gaze as the 45th president and his minions have shredded democratic norms and punished Republicans like her for not marching in lockstep.
“The leaders of the Republican Party have made themselves willing hostages to a man who admits he tried to ‘overturn’ a presidential election and suggests he would pardon Jan. 6 defendants, some of whom have been charged with seditious conspiracy,” Cheney told The Washington Post. “I’m a constitutional conservative and I do not recognize those in my party who have abandoned the Constitution to embrace Donald Trump. History will be their judge. I will never stop fighting for our constitutional republic. No matter what.”
Meanwhile, Cheney’s fellow Republicans are busy doing other things, like quoting neo-Nazis who pled guilty for possession of child pornography.
(Via Yahoo! News and The Washington Post)