Sen. Ben Sasse
Republicans from Ben SasseHouse ask the Senate to block the Commerce Secretary’s vote on Huawei Juan Williams: The Republican Party shrinks before QAnon McCaul asks senators to block the Commerce Secretary’s vote due to Huawei’s concerns MORE (R-Neb.), Who said he can vote this month to convict ex President Trump
Donald Trump Pelosi pressures Newsom to choose Schiff for the next California AG: report The Palm Beach city attorney says Trump must be able to live on the Mar-a-Lago Trump heliport in Mar-a-Lago to be demolished soon MORE in an impeachment article, he is resisting possible retaliation by the Central Committee of the Republican State of Nebraska, warning that his party must choose between “conservatism and madness”.
Sasse released a five-minute video on Thursday responding to Republican officials who want to censor him at a meeting of the Republican State Central Committee on February 13 because of his criticisms of Trump.
He warned that eliminating Trump skeptics from the Republican Party is not “just civic cancer for the nation [but] just terrible for our party. ”
Sasse, who did not support Trump’s candidacy in 2016 or 2020, considered his critics in the state party to be “angry with life” and at odds with regular Nebraskans.
“I listen to Nebraskans every day and very few of them are as angry with life as some of the people on this committee. Not all of you, but many, “said Sasse in the video.” Policy junkies do not represent the majority of Nebraska conservatives. “
Sasse is one of several Republican rulers under attack for criticizing Trump.
Rep. Liz Cheney
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Local Republican Party organizations across the country have acted in recent days to punish Republican lawmakers who voted against Trump last month.
The Central Republican Committee of La Salle County voted on Wednesday to censor Rep. Adam Kinzinger
Adam Daniel Kinzinger Republicans come together to keep Cheney in power Pelosi issues blasting ‘cowardly’ Republican Party leader ‘McCarthy (Q-CA)’ Kinzinger: Republican Party colleagues thanked me for speaking out against Trump MORE (R-Ill.) While the Republican Party of South Carolina voted on Saturday to censor Rep. Tom Rice
Hugh (Tom) Thompson RiceHere are Republican Party lawmakers censored by Republicans for impeaching Trump in South Carolina. Republican Party votes to censor Representative Rice for impeachment Upton becomes the first member of Congress to vote for impeachment of two presidents MORE (RS.C.) for its impeachment vote.
But Sasse is holding on. In the video released on Thursday, he blamed Trump for inciting the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol, which left a policeman and four others dead.
“Now, many of you are cut off because I condemned your lies that led to a riot. Let’s be clear: the anger in the state party was never about me violating principles or abandoning conservative politics. I am one of the most conservative voters in the Senate. The anger was always just that I didn’t bend my knee to a guy, ”said Sasse, looking directly at the camera to address state party officials.
Sasse called the January 6 invasion of the Capitol “ugly” and said that the “shameful violence of the mob to interrupt a constitutionally ordered Congress meeting to assert … peaceful transfer of power” was the result of Trump spreading lies about the 2020 Election results.
“It happened because the president lied to you. He lied about the results of the election for 60 days, despite losing 60 consecutive appeals in court, many of them made by wonderful Trump-appointed judges, ”said Sasse.
He said Trump also lied when he said the then vice president Mike Pence
Michael (Mike) Richard PencePence announces post-White House office and plans to return to Indiana. Five conclusions from Trump’s impeachment trial The Missouri newspaper asks Hawley and Blunt to ‘bring Trump to justice’ MORE he could simply violate his constitutional oath by declaring him, instead of now President Biden, the winner.
“That was not true,” said Sasse.
“He then angered a crowd that attacked the capital, many shouting, ‘Hang Pence.’ If that president were a Democrat, we both know how you would respond. But because he had ‘Republican’ behind his name, you are defending him, ”added Sasse, rebuking his critics.
Sasse is one of five Republican senators who voted last week to table a motion by the senator. Rand Paul
Randal (Rand) Howard PaulThe memo: It’s Trump vs. McConnell in the battle for the soul of the GOP Our nation never quite agreed on much, but it didn’t always split up Lindsey Graham comes to Liz Cheney’s defense MORE (R-Ky.) Declaring Trump’s impeachment trial unconstitutional because he is no longer in office.
Sasse said Republicans who embraced Trump’s claims of a stolen election are moving away from their central conservative beliefs and urged them to preserve the identity of the Republican Party founded on long-standing principles rather than merely loyalty to the former president.
“Something has definitely changed in the past four years, but it’s not me,” he said. “Personality cults are not conservative. Conspiracy theories are not conservative. Lying that an election has been stolen is not conservative. To act as if politics were a religion, is not conservative. “
Sasse said the majority of Nebraska voters agreed with him and pointed to his 2020 reelection campaign, in which he won tens of thousands more votes than Trump in the state in November.
He noted that he won the Omaha area “handily,” while Trump lost “by much.”
“Nebraskans are not addicted to anger and that is good news. You can blame me again, but let’s be clear about why this is happening – it’s because I still believe, as you used to, that politics is not about a guy’s weird worship, ”he said.
The Republican Party of Nebraska censored Sasse in May 2016 for not supporting Trump enough.
Sasse won his Republican primary in the Senate in May 2020 by a large margin, setting a record number of votes received by a candidate for federal public office in a Nebraska primary.
He conquered all 93 state counties during the general elections.
“We will have to choose between conservatism and madness, between just trolling and really persuading the new generation of Americans,” he said.
“This is what I’m focused on and I sincerely hope that many of you will join in the celebration of these great causes for freedom,” he added. “I will always work hard for the Nebraskans and I will always tell the truth.”