A freshman Republican Congresswoman said she can support efforts to censor all 147 of her Republican colleagues who voted in favor of objections to President-elect Joe Biden’s victory hours after a furious crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump invaded the U.S. Capitol.
South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace, who swore an oath alongside other members of the House on January 3, made the comments during an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Monday. Mace insisted that she was “looking at all the options that are on the table” to punish a large number of her Republican colleagues who supported efforts to overthrow voters’ will, including censoring them.
“We had a constitutional crisis on Wednesday,” said Mace. “I barely made it to a week’s work and I’m looking at all the options that are on the table. The censorship must be on the table. We have to take responsibility, we have to keep ourselves up to a higher standard. I am extremely disappointed with some members of my own party because of their behavior and their words. “
“There has to be reconciliation and accountability within our own party,” she added. “If we don’t take responsibility, especially for those who are to blame for starting or allowing it to happen, then we may never win the trust of the American people back.”
Mace expressed a desire to be “part of the solution and not part of the problem” of the party division. While she can support censorship of Congress and suggest censoring the president himself, she also spoke out against a second impeachment of Trump for fear that it could trigger further division. The House is planning to vote on Trump’s impeachment later this week for allegedly inciting the riot.
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The congresswoman said that Americans who believed Trump’s allegations of massive electoral fraud “followed these lies because they feel their voices are not heard”, adding “that is why the president was so successful in plundering them” with his “lies” and dishonesty for the American people. “
Even after the rebels broke into the building, Trump continued to claim without evidence that the election had been “stolen” on Twitter, contributing to the suspension of the platform and, subsequently, the banning of his account permanently.
Mace lamented that “all the achievements” that Republicans have had in the past four years have been “wiped out” by the pro-Trump uprising, saying the party “will have to start from scratch” as a result.
In a personal note, Mace described taking shelter in his office next to the team when protesters stormed the building as one of the most “distressing” experiences of his life. Five people died as a result of the riot, with many more injuries. Congress members narrowly avoided direct confrontations with the crowd.
“I risked my life for a vote on Wednesday that should have been ceremonial,” said Mace. “I was an easy target, my team was an easy target, as we were locked in our offices. Our offices were locked. The curtains were closed, the lights were off and we were silent. All we knew and heard were sirens at all. DC places We knew there were pipe bombs out there, we knew there was a refrigerator full of Molotov cocktails. It was one of the most distressing and scary experiences. “
Mace is not alone in claiming responsibility for those who persisted in making discredited allegations of electoral fraud, even after the riot, although Democrats have suggested significantly more striking measures.
Deputy Cori Bush (D-Mo.), Also a freshman member of the House, presented a resolution that would expel all members of Congress who tried to override electoral results due to a provision in the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits those who ” involved in insurrection or rebellion “to serve.