On the matter, a number of House Republicans are aiming to assert that former President Donald Trump did not partake in an insurrection on January 6th. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla) and a few other Republicans conveyed their perspective on the subject during Tuesday’s proceedings.
“We are here today to authoritatively express that President Trump did not commit an insurrection. And we believe Congress has a unique role in making that declaration,” he said.
He proceeded to mention the actions taken by the Supreme Court of Colorado and the secretary of state of Maine to disqualify Trump from the ballot. They referred to a provision in the 14th Amendment that bars individuals who have taken an oath of office and participated in an insurrection from holding office again.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) urges Congress members to support his resolution that states Donald Trump “did not engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States”:
“It’s time for members of the House and Senate to show where they stand on this question.” pic.twitter.com/2TcRGMkYoG
— The Recount (@therecount) February 6, 2024
Meanwhile, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) insisted, “It is Joe Biden and Democrats who are openly attacking democracy.”
“Trump did not engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States,” she argued.
Rep. Elise Stefanik claims that it is Biden, not Trump, who is the threat to democracy as she attempts to whitewash Jan. 6:
“It is Joe Biden and Democrats who are openly attacking democracy…Trump did not engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States.” pic.twitter.com/PQHTipO64b
— Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) February 6, 2024
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) weighted in, saying “When they came to Washington and protested, all of you called that an insurrection.”
“And then when Joe Biden was inaugurated, and this Capitol was surrounded with 30,000 National Guard troops, none of you stood there and called that an insurrection,” she complained.
It remains ambiguous how the utilization of National Guard troops to safeguard the Capitol, without any intention of overthrowing the government, could be categorized as an insurrection.
Greene consistently tends to classify actions she disapproves of as insurrections, yet fails to elucidate how they align with the actual definition of an insurrection.
