Dear Dr. Badalamente,
Thank you for contacting me regarding the transfer of power
between President Donald J. Trump and President-Elect Joseph R. Biden.
I
come to the Capitol every day to fight for what I believe in. I often
have issues I feel very strongly about—whether it’s a woman’s right to
choose, or immigration, or health care, or the issue of the day. I use
my voice to tell people what I believe to be right, and I listen to the
other side. We hear each other out, we vote, and whoever has the votes
wins. That is what our democracy requires: people having a voice, being
able to use it, and all of us accepting that no one person or group
should get their way all the time.
On November 9, 2020, people
used their voice and elected Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as our next
President and Vice President by a wide margin in both the Electoral
College and in the popular vote. They won, as well, with historic
turnout—the highest in over 100 years. Make no mistake: President Trump
decisively lost a legitimate election.
However, instead of
accepting the will of the people, as our democracy requires, President
Trump and the Republican Party have repeatedly attacked the results at
every turn: peddling false, baseless allegations of election fraud;
pursuing meritless lawsuits which have been repeatedly rejected in
court; ignoring multiple recounts states have conducted to ensure the
accuracy of the vote; and ultimately, by inciting and then unleashing
against Congress a violent mob, fueled by white supremacy, dangerous
conspiracy theories, and Far-Right authoritarianism, in a lethal
domestic terrorist attack and act of insurrection.
President
Trump told a crowd of his supporters on January 6, 2021, that they
should never accept defeat, saying, “you’ll never take this country
back with weakness.” In response, his band of insurrectionists stormed
our nation’s Capitol with weapons, zip-tie handcuffs, Confederate flags,
and more. They violently attacked and injured police, assaulted members
of the press, smashed windows and offices, called for the hanging of
public officials, erected a gallows with a noose outside of the Capitol,
planted pipe bombs and incendiary devices at other nearby buildings,
and tried to rush the halls of Congress with members inside—all in an
attempt to upend a democratic election. Their siege tragically resulted
in several deaths and the murder of a Capitol Police officer—however, it
did not stop Congress from certifying the election of Joe Biden and
Kamala Harris at 3:41 am on January 7, 2021.
There can be no normalizing this attack. To fully heal from the damage of that attack, we need transparency and accountability for everyone responsible.
We need questions answered about the profound breakdown in security. The stark difference in the treatment of this violent mob compared to legions of women, people with disabilities, members of the clergy, and activists of color who have peacefully protested in and around the Capitol complex needs to be recognized as unjust and accounted for. The insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol must be held fully accountable for their actions under the law. The House has already impeached President Trump a second time, and the Senate must now hold a trial—as quickly as possible—and bar him from holding future office.
As a Senator. I reserve my right to use my voice to fight for what I believe in, and I respect those who disagree with me. But at the end of the day, our job is to keep this country a democracy where voices win, not brute force. Any Member who stands up and supports the power of force over the power of democracy has broken their oath of office and should no longer serve. That is why I have called for Senators Hawley and Cruz to resign, which is something I do not do lightly.
To families in Washington state and nationwide, please know that as frightening as this has been, there is reason for hope because of your participation in the very same processes the President and his followers are seeking to undermine. Because of you, we will soon have a President and Congress determined to protect and strengthen rather than dismantle our democratic institutions. We will soon have a President and Congress who are committed to fighting white nationalism and the mass radicalization, facilitated by online platforms, that continues to threaten our communities, and especially communities of color. Continue to have faith in yourselves, be kind to each other, participate in our democracy, and we will get through this together.
Again, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with me. If you would like to know more about my work in the Senate, please feel free to sign up for updates through the subscribe button below.
Sincerely,
Patty Murray
United States Senator
No comments:
Post a Comment