The GOP’s prescription to address Donald Trump’s incitement of an insurrection is for us all to come together in a big kumbaya fest and simply “unite.” We heard that sentiment over and over Wednesday during the House debate on impeachment—even from people like Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan, who has been a leader in helping amplify Trump’s “Big Lie” about election fraud.
Putting aside the utter hypocrisy of GOP members of Congress who helped Trump in his daily efforts divide our country like the fascist he is, the bigger question is: Exactly whom does the GOP want us to “unite” with? Are we supposed to buddy up with the QAnon wing of the GOP that Trump has coddled despite the FBI warning it’s a potential domestic terror threat?
Or maybe they want us to pal around with the Trump-loving bigots of the violent Proud Boys movement who also were at the Capitol on Jan. 6? Could it be the GOP wants us stand shoulder to shoulder with the MAGA protesters who beat police officers with Trump flags when not using their fists—as we all saw on video?!
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Maybe they want us to grab a beer with the 22 percent of Trump supporters who approve of the attack on the Capitol per a new Reuters poll. Think about that for a moment: One in five Republicans approve of a violent insurrection that was intended to prevent the peaceful transfer of power that resulted in innocent people being injured and a police officer who was a U.S. military veteran being killed.
Then again perhaps the GOP’s call for unity is a plea for us to buddy up of with new members of the GOP House caucus like QAnon-loving freshman Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who has declared that Muslim Americans representatives are part of an “Islamic invasion” of Congress? Since Greene voted against impeaching Trump for his role in the insurrection, it appears she doesn’t have a problem with a literal MAGA invasion of Congress.
Then there’s newly sworn-in Rep. Madison Cawthorn, a “rising star” and speaker at the Republican National Convention this past summer, who loves to surround himself with white nationalist imagery and who called the concept of reparations “racist,” stating, “Six hundred thousand Americans gave their lives to free slaves and you’re going to tell me that’s not enough?”
Does anyone really want to “unite” with these vile people?
Now, this doesn’t mean that the call for unity by some Republican members of Congress was not sincere. But for any chance of unity, the GOP needs to get rid of these extremists from their base. I know, waiting for the GOP officials to do the right thing is a fool’s errand. In fact, I’m pretty sure people become Republicans officials so they don’t have to do the right thing.
But the GOP is at a crossroads. There’s a reason why Rep. Liz Cheney, the third-ranking GOP House member, voted to impeach Trump. It’s likely the same reason Mitch McConnell is reportedly considering voting to convict Trump in the Senate trial. They get that the extremist Trump wing of the GOP could very well consume the entire party if allowed to spread, and it will come for them one day like Frankenstein came for his creator.
In fact, we have already seen coming attractions of that, as MAGA terrorists wanted to lynch Mike Pence for not agreeing to help Trump illegally overturn the election. We also learned some GOP members of Congress favored supporting impeachment but didn’t do so because they feared literally being killed by Trump supporters. On Thursday, Michigan GOP Rep. Peter Meijer, one of the 10 Republican House members to vote for impeachment, stated that many of his colleagues were “altering our routines” and “working to get body armor” to protect themselves from MAGA extremists.
Given it appears there’s a growing “military wing” of the GOP, it makes you wonder what was Lindsey Graham’s true intention when he stated on Fox News after Trump was impeached, “We should reject post-presidential impeachments because it will destroy the country and it will incite violence.” Graham added, "If you want to end the violence, end impeachment.”
Was that a warning or a threat? Was Graham telling America that if you dare hold Trump accountable the extremists in the GOP will attack us like they did on Jan. 6? That would typically seem far-fetched, but after what we saw with the storming of the Capitol and the threats of additional violence this weekend by Trump’s base, this is where we stand as a nation.
After all, we didn’t hear the GOP leaders during the impeachment debate denouncing QAnon and the Proud Boys by name. None declared that the 22 percent of their base that supported the attack on the Capitol were not welcomed in the party. The GOP that created the “War on Terror” has become the “Appeasers of Terrorists.”
To those in the GOP who sincerely want unity, I say to you: It will never, ever happen until you expel the extremists in your midst. As a Muslim American, I can recall countless times the right demanded the same of us. It’s time the GOP follow its own advice. However, if the GOP leaders instead appease the extremists in their base, history tell us these violent elements won’t simply go away—rather, they will become even more emboldened. And that’s bad not just for the GOP—it’s also horrible for our nation.
