The anti-Trump conservative group known as The Lincoln Project is now among the interests calling out Congressional Republicans for their complicity in the promotion of political violence. Over the weekend, Tara Setmayer — a senior adviser for the group — went on MSNBC’s The Sunday Show, where she condemned Republican members of Congress for what she referred to as a “cacophony of kookery.” Among other examples of this phenomenon, more than one Republican member of Congress has made a public show of offering Kyle Rittenhouse an internship after his recent exoneration on homicide charges connected to his killing of two people at a protest last year. Rittenhouse claimed self-defense.
When the sordid history of the Trump Republican Party is written, let it be noted that Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were the only House Republicans brave enough to vote to censure Paul Gosar for inciting political assassination.
— Robert Reich (@RBReich) November 17, 2021
Setmayer spoke on MSNBC after host Jonathan Capehart played a video of Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) telling his followers after the Rittenhouse ruling to “be armed, be dangerous, be moral.” Pointedly, she commented as follows:
‘How many times do we have to see examples of the Republican Party debasing themselves this way? This is so antithetical to everything that Republicans claim they believe. The Madison Cawthorns, the Marjorie Taylor Greenes, the Lauren Boeberts — this cacophony of kookery that is happening in the United States Congress is not only an embarrassment but a frightening example of what happens when there are no consequences for bad behavior. What the hell is Kevin McCarthy doing? Going up there and giving these speeches for hours on end, defending Paul Gosar… and then you have these members of Congress who are out here with no consequence whatsoever, inciting and rationalizing violence. This is insanity.’
Setmayer also referred to the antics in question as “un-democratic.” Watch Setmayer below:
“This cacophony of kookery that is happening in the United States Congress is not only an embarrassment but a frightening example of what happens when there are no consequences for bad behavior.” — LP Sr. Advisor @TaraSetmayer on @TheSundayShow pic.twitter.com/9CrwUauEnA
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) November 21, 2021
The problem, of course, is that it’s not just rank-and-file members of the Republican Party’s leadership around the country who are fostering and promoting violence: it’s also Donald Trump himself. The ex-president has repeatedly defended the actions of those who participated in the storming of the Capitol in January, even including those who chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” because of his perceived lack of sufficient loyalty to Trump. The day of violence also included mass physical attacks on police officers, and yet, not even these incidents have been enough of a reality check to snap most of these Republicans out of it.
“We should be concerned about what it means in terms of the safety of members of Congress and the nature of the modern Republican Party. But what it means for the very health of our American democracy,” says Chris Hayes in the wake of Rep. Gosar’s censure.https://t.co/x7ALvsl3DC
— All In with Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) November 22, 2021
