Our local and state Republican Elected Officials are complicit in the seditious actions & insurrection that occurred in Washington DC on January 6th.
US Congressman Matt Gaetz has been fomenting domestic terrorism by sowing disinformation and peddling lies about our election system. He encouraged the rioters to storm the US Capitol by stating publicly that he would object to certification of the 2020 Presidential Election. And after the mob breached the Capitol Building and destroyed property, Gaetz blamed the violence on Antifa in a Facebook post - which has since been flagged as “False.”
While Gaetz was inside the Capitol building, other Panhandle GOP leaders were outside, participating in the melee. According to the Northwest Florida Daily News, a group of about 60 people from the Panhandle traveled by bus and plane to Washington DC. Included in the group were Republican Party officials from Okaloosa and Santa Rosa Counties. Okaloosa County Republican Executive Committee Chair Sandra Atkinson participated in the event on Capitol Hill.
The Republican Party, from the President all the way down to Congressional Representatives & Local Party Leaders, has engaged in deception, lies, sedition, anti-patriotism, and unconstitutional actions. The chaos and mob violence that we all witnesses at the U.S. Capitol are the disastrous result of this irresponsible behavior. The Republican Party does not believe in democracy and they do not respect the Constitution.
Without qualification, we condemn the actions of these terrorists and the rhetoric that incited them. Further, we call on these same officials to respect the Constitution so that the difficult work of democratic government can be resumed.
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