This headline story from
Reuters news should shake everyone to the very core of our belief in
our nation’s survival as a free and open democratic country and in short it is
a wakeup call for us all:
“Half of Republicans
believe false accounts of deadly U.S. Capitol riot: Reuters-Ipsos poll”
Highlights from the
article (edited to fit the blog):
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Since the deadly January 6
insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, former Trump and his Republican allies have
pushed false and misleading accounts to downplay the event that left five dead
and scores of others wounded. His supporters appear to have listened.
Three months after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the
Capitol to try to overturn his November election loss, about half of
Republicans believe the siege was largely a non-violent protest or was the
handiwork of left-wing activists “trying
to make Trump look bad.”
Six in 10 Republicans also believe the false claim put out
by Trump that November's presidential election “was stolen from him due to widespread voter fraud,” and the same proportion
of Republicans think he should run again in 2024, the March 30-31 poll showed.
Since the Capitol attack, Trump, many of his allies within
the Republican Party and right-wing media personalities have publicly painted a
picture of the day’s events jarringly at odds with reality.
Hundreds of Trump’s supporters, mobilized by the former
president's false claims of a stolen election, climbed walls of the Capitol
building and smashed windows to gain entry while lawmakers were inside voting
to certify President Joe Biden’s election victory. The rioters - many of them
sporting Trump campaign gear and waving flags - also included known white
supremacist groups such as the Proud Boys.
In a recent interview
with Fox News, Trump said (as noted above): “The
rioters posed zero threat.”
Others like Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) have publicly doubted
whether Trump supporters were behind the riot.
Also, 12 Republicans in the House voted against a resolution
honoring Capitol Police officers who defended the grounds during the rampage,
with one lawmaker saying that he objected using the word “insurrection to describe the incident.”
The poll also shows a large number of rank-and-file Republicans
have embraced the myth, while 59% of all Americans say Trump bears some
responsibility for the attack, and only 3 in 10 Republicans agree.
Eight in 10 Democrats and 6 in 10 independents reject the
false claims that the Capitol siege was “mostly
peaceful or it was staged by left-wing protestors.”
John Geer, an expert
on public opinion at Vanderbilt University said: “Republicans have their own version of reality, and this is a huge
problem since democracy requires accountability and accountability requires
evidence.”
Susan Corke, Director
of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center – the group
which tracks hate groups said: “The
refusal of Trump and prominent Republicans to repudiate the events of January 6
increases the likelihood of a similar incident happening again. That is the
biggest danger – normalizing this behavior. I do think we are going to see more
violence.”
In a fresh reminder of the security threats to the Capitol since
January 6, a motorist rammed his car into the Capitol police, brandished a
knife, killed one officer and injured another thus forcing the Capitol complex
to lock down. Officers then shot and killed the suspect.
Allie Carroll, spokeswoman for the RNC said members condemn the
Capitol attack. She then referred to a January 13 statement from RNC Chair Ronna
McDaniel who said: “Violence has no place
in our politics ... Those who
partook in the assault on our Nation's Capitol and those who continue to
threaten violence should be found, held accountable, and prosecuted to the
fullest extent of the law.”
A representative for Trump did not respond to requests for
comment.
The disinformation campaign aimed at downplaying the
insurrection and Trump's role in it reflects a growing consensus within the GOP
that its fortunes remain tethered to Trump and his devoted base.
According to this poll, Trump remains the most popular
figure within the party, with 8 in 10 Republicans continuing to hold a
favorable impression of him.
Tim Miller, former
spokesman for Jeb Bush said: “Congressional
Republicans have assessed they need to max out the Trump vote to win, and that is
the path back to the majority. The window for the Republican Party to distance
itself from Trump seems to have passed. There was a chance after January 6 for
Republican leaders to really put their foot down and say: ‘We can’t be the
insurrectionist party,’ but now that opportunity is totally gone.”
Republicans in Congress show few signs of breaking with
Trump. Right after the deadly Capitol siege, 147 Republican lawmakers voted
against certifying Biden's election win.
The Democratic-led House of Representatives impeached Trump
for “inciting an insurrection” thus
making him the only U.S. president in history to be impeached twice. However, most
Senate Republicans voted to acquit him of that charge in a trial.
Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN)
said: “The party must cater to the working-class voters that comprise
Trump’s political base ahead of next year’s critical midterm elections that
will dictate control of Congress.”
Banks then wrote in a
memo to GOP House leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) which he posted on Twitter
saying:
“Members who want to
swap out working-class voters because they resent President Trump’s impact...
are wrong.”
NOTE: Banks was one of the 147 lawmakers who voted to block
certification of Biden's win, and he later voted against impeaching Trump.
Banks did not respond to
requests for comment.
Some mainstream Republicans contend that after Republicans
lost both the White House and control of both chambers of Congress on Trump's
watch, the party must move on from the former president in order to attract
suburban, moderate and independent voters.
In this poll, only about 3 in 10 Independents said they have
a favorable view of Trump, among the lowest level recorded since his
presidency. Most Americans, about 60%, believe Biden won the November election
fair and square, and said Trump should not run again.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL),
one of Trump's Republican critics in Congress, has criticized the push to
rewrite the history of the Capitol attack writing in a fundraising appeal to
supporters last month saying: “The
disinformation effort is such a dangerous, disgusting spin on reality. What’s
even worse is that it goes unchallenged by so many in the Republican Party.”
I conclude the GOP bottom line might be this:
My 2 cents: This Reuters/Ipsos poll speaks for itself in the words of those people noted above. In a word it is very worrisome that some many in the GOP still stick with Trump – which shows simply the power of his conning skills, pure and simple – that is the most dangerous aspect.
The above quote from John Geer says it all, and that I agree with: “Republicans have their own version of reality, and this is a huge problem since democracy requires accountability and accountability requires evidence.”
Thanks for stopping by.
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