Family Of Capitol Officers Openly Snub McCarthy & McConnell

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Members of the family of the late Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick refused to shake hands with GOP House and Senate leaders Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell during a ceremony in D.C. this week for awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the D.C. Metropolitan Police and Capitol Police.

The medal was awarded in connection to the law enforcement agencies’ work defending the Capitol during last year’s Trump-incited attack. Some of those who were either directly involved in defending against the attack or who are closely personally connected to participants in the defense have already been critical of prominent Republican leaders, who have largely refused to hold Trump accountable to any significant extent for his direct and documented role in inciting what happened. He’s barely tried to hide it — he has recently called for the release of all those detained in connection to the violence. He didn’t distinguish between those jailed for non-violent offenses and those charged with violence or among those in pretrial detention and those already sentenced. And yet, these top Republicans have made no significant moves to stop him becoming president again.

“They came out right away and condemned what happened on January 6, and whatever hold that Trump has on them, they’ve backstepped, they’ve danced,” one of Sicknick’s brothers said Tuesday at the scene of the ceremony when asked about his disinterest in McCarthy and McConnell. “They won’t admit to wrongdoing — not necessarily them themselves, but of Trump, of the rioters… Unlike Liz Cheney, they have no idea what integrity is. They can’t stand up for what’s right and wrong. With them, it’s party first.” Brian Sicknick died soon after participating in the defense of the Capitol, where he was assaulted with chemical irritants. Previous revelations from those close to the late officer revealed Trump — as the then-president of the United States, who often has serious responsibilities in responding to those who have died in some form of public service — didn’t even bother calling his family, and there’s no apparent reason to suspect Donald has suddenly rectified that in recent weeks or months.

Trump has recently taken to calling for a suspension of electoral rules in the Constitution amid his quest to reclaim power either through a redo of the last election or just declaring him the winner now. He’s unconcerned about precedent or the legal standards for establishing a presidential administration, which are critical for at least a basic level of stability in dealing with national security, long-term economic concerns, any international negotiations, and executing domestic policy. He’s apparently willing instead to dump the electoral process in the United States, past and future, and with that mindset, who knows what kind of chaos he could attempt to enact if he wins the GOP presidential nod and the presidency in the next election?