Date: 2024-10-19 Page is: DBtxt003.php txt00020113
US Politics
Representative Lauren Boebert
Lauren Boebert jumps gun, claims mentions of Congress member involved in Capitol riot refer to her
Peter Burgess
Lauren Boebert jumps gun, claims mentions of Congress member involved in Capitol riot refer to her
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 12: Rep.-elect Lauren Boebert (R-CO) arrives to the Hyatt Regency hotel on Capitol Hill on November 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. Orientation begins for the newly-elected members today and will run through Nov. 21. (Photo by Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)
Going into her second week in office, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado continues to start drama and spread controversy. In what seems to be a result of her guilty conscience, Boebert essentially admitted to being involved in the recent Capitol attack after calling out New York Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney in a public statement. Referring to his allusion that some Congress members gave tours to the Jan. 6 Capitol rioters, Boebert described Maloney’s appearance on MSNBC Wednesday as “lies,” adding that “all of your implications are categorically false.”
But the catch is, Maloney never named any members of Congress. By issuing this statement and writing that Maloney’s “comments [about her] are extremely offensive, shameful and dangerous,” Boebert implied that the member of Congress Maloney was referring to was, in fact, her.
Maloney replied to the tweet in which she shared the statement noting that he never said her name in public, and could share the transcript for verification. “If you’re going to be a gun nut, you probably shouldn’t go off half cocked,” he added.
Democrats have demanded a full investigation into which members of Congress may have assisted rioters last week during the insurrection at the Capitol. “It’s a sad reality that we find ourselves at a place where the enemy is within and we cannot trust our own colleagues,” Maloney told MSNBC. “Some of our new colleagues, the same ones, of course, who believe in conspiracy theories and who want to carry guns into the House Chamber, who today — today — have been yelling at Capitol Police,” Maloney added, “shoving Capitol Police — who a week ago right now were risking their lives to save ours. This conduct is beyond the pale and extends to some of this interaction with the very people who attacked the Capitol.” Boebert claimed Maloney’s TV segment resulted in threats to both her and her staff. But while threats to any person are unethical and wrong, Boebert’s own actions may be to blame. The first-term lawmaker is also facing criticism for her tweets on the day of the failed coup. Boebert not only tweeted “Today is 1776,” referring to the American Revolution, but also mentioned the location of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even while legislators were being placed into secured locations for safety. At the time of her tweet, insurgents were storming the Capitol building looking for lawmakers, so her update about Pelosi’s location was thus seen as a way to provide information to rioters. Despite the seriousness of her actions and what could have followed, Boebert dismissed the criticism and responded in a statement with: “They [Democrats] accuse me of live-tweeting the Speaker’s presence after she had been safely removed from the Capitol, as if I was revealing some big secret, when in fact this removal was also being broadcast on TV.” In response to her statement, Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz said lawmakers “were specifically instructed by those protecting us not to tell anyone, including our family, where exactly we were, for reasons that remain obvious.” But giving the House speaker’s location was not the only time Boebert addressed Pelosi on the day of the failed coup. Earlier in the day while on the floor, Boebert directly spoke to Pelosi, noting that she had “constituents outside this building right now! I promised my voters to be their voice!” It doesn’t end there though, as Boebert has repeatedly gained national attention for her extremely conservative views. Before her election, Boebert made headlines for being open to the QAnon conspiracy theory. In a May interview, she said that 'everything that I’ve heard of Q, I hope that this is real, because it only means America is getting stronger and better and people are returning to conservative values, and that’s what I am for.' Most recently she was noted as one of the officials who refused to use metal detectors in place for the safety of lawmakers at the Capitol. On Tuesday, she refused to open her bag for Capitol police after it set off metal detectors. As a result of Boebert’s continuous controversial actions despite only being in office for a mere two weeks, Colorado officials and others have called for Boebert’s resignation. In the letter published by KUSA and first obtained by The Steamboat Pilot and Today, officials across Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, which Boebert represents, said they felt “deep concern about her actions leading up to and during the protests that turned into a violent deadly mob.” “Representative Boebert’s actions, including her statements on the floor immediately preceding the insurrection and her social media posts leading up to the riots were irresponsible and reprehensible,” the officials wrote. They expressed concern that the congresswoman’s actions and speech could encourage a “mob mentality.” “Our bigger concern is that hate groups are proliferating in America and they are heavily armed. We request that you create a Congressional panel to thoroughly investigate these groups. They pose a real threat to American democracy, to our communities and to our residents,” they wrote in the letter. Others have expressed similar concerns, resulting in the hashtag #ResignBoebert garnering thousands of tweets.