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https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/09/06/what-are-adam-kinzinger-waiting/

cigaretteman

HR King
May 29, 2001
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Opinion by
Jennifer Rubin
Columnist
Yesterday at 10:30 a.m. EDT



Republican Reps. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) and Liz Cheney (Wyo.) have defied their party and risked their seats by agreeing to serve on the House select committee to investigate the MAGA Republicans’ attempt to overturn the 2020 election, which culminated in the violent insurrection on Jan. 6. Cheney recently accepted the role as vice chair of the committee.

The two Republicans supported Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s refusal to accept two Republican gadflies opposed to the committee whom House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) picked in a ham-handed effort to turn the committee into a three-ring circus.
When McCarthy obliquely threatened telecom committees not to respond to lawful requests for relevant documents, Kinzinger retorted during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union”: “I think to turn around then and make ominous talk to these telecom companies that, when we take over, it’s going to be different or we will have payback, that’s just not, frankly, the Republican Party I remember and the Republican Party I ever joined.” He added, “Is it obstruction? I don’t know what is considered obstruction of a congressional investigation, but I would certainly recommend he never go there again.”



To recap: Kinzinger and Cheney’s party pushed the “big lie” that the election was stolen, overwhelmingly opposed impeachment, blocked a bipartisan commission, tried to undermine the committee and now has threatened private companies against cooperating. McCarthy also blatantly lied in saying the FBI had found the former disgraced president had “no involvement” in the violent insurrection (which he sparked with his call to action in the “stop the steal” rally).
Cheney and Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.), the chairman of the House select committee, replied in writing: “Minority Leader McCarthy has recently made statements regarding the Jan. 6 investigation. He has suggested, based on an anonymous report, that the Department of Justice has concluded that Donald Trump did not cause, incite, or provoke the violence on Jan. 6. . . . We’ve received answers and briefings from the relevant entities, and it’s been made clear to us that reports of such a conclusion are baseless.” They also noted that after the attack on the Capitol that McCarthy briefly conceded Trump “bears responsibility for the attack.”
We can praise Cheney and Kinzinger for their candor, but what are they still doing in the GOP and seeking to secure the majority for the Jan. 6 enablers, cheerleaders and rationalizers? It boggles the mind that Cheney, who has repeatedly stated that McCarthy should not be speaker (and surely wouldn’t support other Trump pawns such as New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, who replaced Cheney in the No. 3 spot in House leadership), will run under the GOP banner and certainly support other Republicans whose victories could secure the majority for the party that has embraced authoritarianism, lawlessness and nonstop lying.


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On “State of the Union” on Sunday, Kinzinger had this peculiar exchange with host Dana Bash:
Bash: Congressman, do you think that voters should trust House Republican leaders with the majority in the next election?
Kinzinger: Yes, I mean, look, I’m a Republican. I would like to see actual Republican values in the majority.
All I can say right now is, my party has to embrace truth. We have to have a full reckoning of what happened on January 6, and we have to turn away from conspiracy. I think, if we're going to be in charge and pushing conspiracy and pushing division and pushing lies, then the Republican Party should not have the majority.
But if we're going to be the party that actually tells truth and fights for real conservative values, and doesn't masquerade conservatism as some anger future, then, certainly, we should have the majority.
But that’s up to the party right now to determine. For me, I’m going to go out and tell the truth.
Huh?! There should be no doubt — and Kinzinger has repeatedly acknowledged as such — this is a party that is all about “pushing conspiracy and pushing division and pushing lies.” There’s no doubt that it will stoop to obstruction or embrace violence. Kinzinger is simply going to shrug his shoulders and recommend the country roll the dice on a party that has already proved itself contemptuous of truth, democracy and simple decency?
Kinzinger and Cheney’s advocacy for truth-telling about Jan. 6 is admirable. However, they have been unwilling to acknowledge that putting their party in the majority is not putting democracy and the Constitution above their party or their personal political futures. To the contrary, they are perpetuating the myth that the republic would do just fine with the GOP back in power and with Trump’s flunkies running the House. They know better, and it’s long past time for them to say so.

 
Bravo, you've moved from just copying/pasting articles in the body and just link it right in the subject. Brilliant!
 
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