Sen. Ron Johnson
Ronald (Ron) Harold JohnsonAshcroft refuses candidacy to replace Blunt in the Missouri Senate Republican party faces retirement brain drain from the Senate Retirement wave puts the Republican party on the defensive MORE (R-Wis.) He said in an interview this week that he did not feel insecure during the January 6 Capitol rebellion, but he might have felt if Black Lives Matter protesters and extreme left “antifa” activists had demonstrated there. , unleashing a new wave of criticism.
“I was also criticized because I made the comment on January 6 – I never felt threatened, because I didn’t,” Johnson said on Thursday on “The Joe Pags Show”, referring to the uprising he tried unsuccessfully to stop the certification of the results of the Electoral College.
“Even if these thousands of people were marching on Capitol Hill trying to pressure people like me to vote the way they wanted me to vote, I knew that these were people who love this country, who truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to infringe the law, so I was not worried, ”he continued.
“So, if the situation had changed, Joe, it could spell trouble. If the situation had changed and President Trump
Donald TrumpPentagon gets criticized for extending Guard time at the Capitol Fundraising points to Trump-GOP cracks Trump’s rally organizer says Alex Jones threatened to take her off the stage: report MORE won the election and those were tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter and antifa protesters, I must have been a little concerned. “
Johnson’s comments were against the video showing pro-Trump protesters attacking police officers guarding the Capitol complex before the crowd invaded the police and ransacked the building.
At least five people died in the riot, including a police officer. Two other policemen who responded to the crowd died of suicide in the following days, and about 140 policemen were injured.
The statement echoed other comments that Republicans made when trying to compare the Capitol revolt on January 6 with the Black Lives Matter protests that took place over the summer. While many of the demonstrations against police killings of black Americans have remained peaceful, some have evolved into looting and violence.
Johnson’s most recent comments have sparked a wave of recriminations, with critics calling his equivalence between different racist groups.
“Senator Johnson’s comments are racist and unacceptable. There is nothing patriotic about invading the Capitol to try to overturn an election and murder elected officials. Apparently, for Ron Johnson, simply being black is a greater offense than launching a violent insurrection. Ron Johnson is a disgrace to the United States Senate and the state of Wisconsin. He needs to resign immediately, ”said Jessica Floyd, president of the Democratic super PAC American Bridge 21st Century, in a statement on Friday.
“What, whites love this country and blacks don’t? That’s exactly what he is saying,” Wisconsin state senator LaTonya Johnson (D), who is black, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Johnson responded to criticism by noting the violence that resulted from some protests last summer.
“Of the 7,750 protests last summer associated with the BLM and Antifa, 570 turned into violent unrest that killed 25 people and caused material damage from $ 1 to $ 2 billion. That’s why I would have been more concerned, “said Johnson in a statement obtained by The Hill.
The senator appeared to be citing data from a report released by the nonprofit Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project in September. That report, which identified thousands of protests between May and August, found that more than 90 percent of the demonstrations were non-violent.
“More than 10,100 of them – or almost 95% – involve peaceful protesters. Less than 570 – or approximately 5% – involve protesters involved in the violence, ”said the report.
The criticism comes as Johnson ponders whether to run for re-election in 2022. He remains undecided, although he said last week that retiring is “probably my preference now.” Your seat is expected to be strongly contested after President biden
Joe BidenPentagon is criticized for extending Guard time at the Capitol Booker to try to make the expansion of child tax credit permanent Sullivan says tariffs will not occupy the center of negotiations with China MORE narrowly won Wisconsin in November.
Updated: 8h55