California Rep. Tom McClintock (R) speaks on the House floor on April 23, 2020.
California U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock (R) said Wednesday (Jan. 13) that if lawmakers had reacted with the same determination to the violent riots that occurred in several cities across the country this summer, the mob break-in to Congress might not have happened.
In his speech on the House floor, McClintock said he intends to hold the rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol accountable. He also said, “If we had prosecuted Black Lives Matter (BLM) and Antifa rioters across the country with the same resolve over the last six months, then this incident (the mob breaking into Congress) might not have happened at all.”
The House voted 232 to 197 on Wednesday to impeach President Trump, saying he “incited the riot. In response, McClintock said, “I can’t think of a more despicable, combative, and unwarranted act than impeachment.”
He argued that the impeachment of Congressional Democrats against a president who had lost the election, and before the week he left office, was a “draconian and unconstitutional event. He also said it (impeachment) has made President-elect Biden’s promise to heal the nation a hollow joke.”
After weeks of criticism of the 2020 election results, President Trump on Jan. 6 encouraged his supporters to let their voices be heard by members of Congress in a peaceful and patriotic manner. Since then, a number of protesters have broken into the Capitol, disrupting a joint session to certify the new president for a time, and five people died in the riot.
Trump supporters said the president did not instruct those at the rally to act violently. McClintock agreed with this statement, arguing that there can be crazy people in every movement and that President Trump cannot be blamed for the extreme behavior of some people.
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