Even though Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) was at the Capitol during the January 6 insurrection, he tossed aside evidence that Donald Trump refused to help when Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy asked him to – in order to blame Nancy Pelosi for the carnage and deaths.
During a break in today’s impeachment trial, Marshall visited Fox News to offer up some pro-Trump propaganda. The trial broke after lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin said he wanted to depose and get notes from Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA). She made a statement last night, that McCarthy had told her that in a phone call with Trump, asking for help during the Capitol attack, Trump said the rioters were more upset about the election than McCarthy was.
But even that was not enough to shake Marshall from his devotion to Trump. He blasted the Senate for voting 55-45 in favor of hearing from witnesses (which was later abandoned) and called it “a political hail Mary.”
He went on to claim that it “just proves my point that President Trump lives rent-free in the heads of Democrats.”
Then the guy who thought the way to manage COVID vaccinations is by “getting government out of the way” last month, now thinks it’s time government focused on it. “We should be focused on getting vaccinations in people’s arms, getting the economy going again,” Marshall told Fox host Neil Cavuto.
FACT CHECK: The House is working on a two trillion coronavirus stimulus and hopes to pass it soon.
Marshall made his first attempt to make impeachment about Pelosi: “Nancy Pelosi, the same games, impeachment trial, inviting people to Chinatown.” He said about the incitement of insurrection charge, “The prosecutors here proved that that’s not true.” (You can view the videos the House managers used as evidence against Trump at The Boston Globe and decide for yourself about the charges.)
Cavuto brought up Trump’s shocking words to McCarthy during the siege, as reported by Herrera-Beutler: “Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.” Cavuto asked, if it’s true, “Would you say that maybe these actions today are justified?”
Marshall said, “I would be angry but that’s not what the president’s been charged with,” he said.
Cavuto pressed: “Did he do nothing to stop it? … The president could have gotten this under control. … If this conversation is true, he did nothing to do so.”
Marshall said “there are too many” unanswered questions (though he showed no interest in finding the answers), then he deflected: “I think the real question is what did Nancy Pelosi know and when did she know it?” Marshall added, “Why didn’t we beef up security the day of the riot?”
FACT CHECK: Pelosi has nothing to do with the issue. She’s not the one on trial and she doesn’t oversee day-to-day operations of the Capitol Police.
Watch Marshall stay loyal to the guy who might have gotten him killed below, from Fox News’ February 13, 2021 coverage of the Trump impeachment trial.
I was heartened by Indivisible’s Truth Brigade, which I just joined, which is dedicated to fighting misinformation and talking to people about issues. I haven’t done anything with them yet so it remains to be seen how effective (or not) they are. But at least they are trying.
The more relevant question: what did Cruz, Hawley, Gosar, Biggs, Brooks, and other Republicans know?