Madison Cawthorn has stood as one of Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters, even after the twice-impeached president left office in disgrace. And the North Carolina representative has doubled down on that support in recent days, drawing further outrage after he spoke of “bloodshed” perhaps being necessary in the name of “election security” after touting the lie that Donald Trump somehow had the 2020 election stolen from him.
Monday brought word of an event where Cawthorn talked about taking up arms against Americans in the name of increased voting restrictions many right wing reactionaries have touted as “election security” as part of a vast, wholly unfounded conspiracy about voter fraud. For months now, Trump supporters have believed the Big Lie that Trump insists the election was stolen from him, something claimed without any evidence whatsoever.
The Washington Post, for example, laid out his latest statements and the Trump-like lies he echoed when he falsely claimed that elections in America are “rigged.”
“The things that we are wanting to fight for, it doesn’t matter if our votes don’t count,” Cawthorn told the crowd, according to a video of the event posted by the county party on its Facebook page and circulated on Twitter by a Democratic congressional staffer. “Because, you know, if our election systems continue to be rigged and continue to be stolen, then it’s going to lead to one place — and it’s bloodshed.”
That quote, and video of the event and his speech, quickly went viral on Monday.
At Macon County GOP event yesterday, Madison Cawthorn called January 6 rioters “political hostages,” and spoke of trying to “bust them out.” Then-
Attendee: “When are you gonna call us to Washington again?"
Cawthorn: “We are actively working on that one.”pic.twitter.com/hN96kswnNt— Aaron Fritschner (@Fritschner) August 30, 2021
The event drew a lot of reaction, including calls that Cawthorn should be removed from office.
Madison Cawthorn should be expelled from Congress over this https://t.co/F44AbYkEWH
— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) August 30, 2021
A staffer emailed me yesterday asking if I wanted to buy a bulletproof vest because “it’s now an approved expense by the House.” I didn’t believe she was for real. Turns out she was thinking about people like Cawthorn — NOT even people outside of my office building — BUT inside. https://t.co/xqg3A8IBhQ
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) August 31, 2021
How can Madison Cawthorn not be expelled from Congress over this?
How did @SpeakerPelosi move faster over a misjudged @IlhanMN tweet than she is over repeated threats of violence from GOP members of Congress like Cawthorn? https://t.co/IVF0smphgj
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) August 31, 2021
Rep. Madison Cawthorn calls the Jan 6th terrorists “political hostages”
Man: “When are you gonna call us to Washington again?"
Cawthorn: “We are actively working on that one”Sure sounds like they’re planning Round 2. Just because he’s dumb AF doesn’t mean he isn’t dangerous
— Lindy Li (@lindyli) August 30, 2021
This sure looks like Congressman Madison Cawthorn is supporting another attempt to overthrow the government https://t.co/YMFSp2oUjn
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) August 30, 2021
Madison Cawthorn and Jim Jordan are unraveling even more. Probably worried about their phone records…
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) August 30, 2021
It’s unclear if there will be any kind of reaction to a sitting US representative essentially calling for a second insurrection, but if you’ve been paying attention to anything over the last year, well, you probably already know the answer to that.