Klickitat County Democrats condemn attempted coup
The January 6 attack on our Capitol and our democracy was a disheartening and disgraceful beginning to the year and the legislative sessions. This act of domestic terror must be called what it was—an attempted coup. It was an attempt to blatantly disregard our institutions, practices and the voice of the people. This was, in the words of former Defense Secretary Jim Mathis, "fomented by President Trump.” Throughout the night and to the very end, his allies in the Senate and the House spread outright lies about our electoral process, sowing doubt and rationalizing the anger felt by those who attacked the Capitol.
This embrace of falsehoods, doubt-casting and delegitimizing of our democracy is happening at all levels of the Republican Party, from President Trump to local party organizations. On Jan. 5, the Klickitat County Republicans posted on Facebook a letter they sent to our federal representatives that closed with, "Please represent the Klickitat County Republicans by raising your voice in support of the Electoral College Challenge on Wednesday." Rep. McMorris-Rodgers (WA-5) publicly supported the challenge until her own life was put at risk by the violent mob incited by the GOP’s attempts to delegitimize a free and fair election. As Senator Mitt Romney said with fury during the evacuation, "This is what the president has caused today, this insurrection."
We at the Klickitat County Democrats were heartened by Congress's return to their chambers later that night to finalize the long-known truth of President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris's clear electoral victory. We know that calls for unity are important, but so are the calls for accountability for those attacking the Capitol and those whose rhetoric and leadership inspired this hate-filled attack. We must continue to strive for a more perfect union by upholding democratic values, policies, and practices that improve the lives of those most in need. We hope that the insurrection of January 6 serves as a wake-up call to the failure of the divisive, conspiracy-addled rhetoric of the Republican Party. We must strive for a better, brighter and more compassionate, truth-based world.