Photo credit: Tyler Merbler from USA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons. Source link.
The January 6th, 2021 Insurrection at our United States Capitol must never be forgotten or minimized. The Final Report of the January 6th Committee confirms what we all witnessed on the news that day -- a violent, attempted coup, instigated by disgraced, twice-impeached ex-president Trump and enabled by multiple members of the Republican Party. Now it's up to the Justice Department to act on the four criminal referrals for Trump issued by the J6 Committee.
Regretfully, David Rouzer, our District 7 Representative-elect, and Ted Budd, newly elected NC Senator, were among those in the House of Representatives who voted against certifying President Biden's legitimate election win on that fateful day. In doing so, they sided with the seditionists, authoritarians, and anarchists. They'd prefer we forget, but like Trump, they're not out of the woods.
For example, texts between Budd and Trump's Chief of Staff Mark Meadows have emerged. The texts indicate that Budd may have suggested a quid pro quo pardon of Robin Hayes, convicted former U.S. Representative from NC and NC GOP Party Chair who admitted to lying to the FBI. What might Budd have offered in exchange? Boosting the Big Lie it seems. Here's the text Budd sent to Meadows on Dec. 23, 2020: "Anything I need to do to help get Robin H on the pardon list? 2. I’m on the Jan 6 objector list in case there’s anything to sync up on. 3. Hang tough. Grateful for you." Budd held up his end on January 6, and Trump pardoned Hayes on January 18.
Thankfully, Democrats in the U.S. Senate have retained their majority, and President Biden is at the helm of our country. Unsurprisingly, the other party is in complete disarray, starkly revealing that governing is no longer their priority. Let's hope that the clown show on full display will persuade more Americans that we must, once and for all, cast aside Trump's Republican Party.