Some Republicans in Congress are expected to offer explanations as to why they have not more strongly condemned President Donald Trump’s false election allegations before the U.S. Capitol riot, Republican researcher and strategist Frank Luntz told CNBC on Thursday.
“I think Republicans have a lot to do now to remedy this breach,” said Luntz in the “Squawk Box”. “They have a lot to do to explain why they didn’t face the president before that, why these protests were left out of control like this.”
Capitol disturbances broke out on Wednesday afternoon after Trump supporters went to Washington to protest Congress’s finalization of the results of the November presidential election. Trump encouraged the meeting, tweeting about it for weeks, including a December 19 message when he said the protest “it will be wild.”
In a speech at the rally on Wednesday morning, Trump continued to push his unfounded narrative that he would have defeated President-elect Joe Biden had it not been for widespread electoral fraud. He vowed never to grant Biden the election again. “We will prevent theft,” he said as he took the stage.
While the Trump supporters’ violation of the U.S. Capitol caused a stoppage of hours for the Electoral College vote to end, the House and Senate finally resumed their sessions to confirm Biden’s victory on Thursday morning. Some Republicans still opposed Biden’s victories in Arizona and Pennsylvania – but some Republican senators, like Kelly Loeffler, who lost his seat in Georgia, reversed their positions after the unrest.
“This is a bad time for this country. It is a bad time for the people’s home. It is a bad time for the Republican Party,” said Luntz. “This morning, I know that there are many people with a lot of regret on their hands and, hopefully, the one who regrets most is the President of the United States.”
Shortly after Congress finalized Biden’s victory, Trump said in a statement that there would be an “orderly transition” of power. However, he again falsely claimed that “the facts” support his claim that he lost to Biden only because of large-scale electoral fraud.
Luntz has been warning about issues for the Republican Party even before Trump supporters invaded the Capitol, causing his evacuation and the suspension of a constitutionally ordered session. On Tuesday, he said that “the next 48 hours will be the worst for the Republican Party”, referring to Georgia’s Senate runoff elections and plans by some Republicans to oppose the votes of the Electoral College.
Georgia’s two Democrats are expected to defeat their Republican opponents, according to NBC News projections, which would give the Democratic Party a majority in the Senate. “This is a lesson for the Republican Party of what is likely to happen if they continue to behave this way,” Luntz said Wednesday morning in response to Georgia’s results.
Luntz doubled his prospects on Thursday: “We have never seen a situation where Americans – Americans – are attacking their critical institution and I think it will have repercussions among undecided voters.”