Republican Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson’s comments about protesters at the Jan. 6 Capitol riot sparked condemnation from the Left, but he’s not backing down.
The senator addressed comments he made during a recent interview in which he said he wasn’t afraid during the deadly Capitol insurgence because the mob was made up of Trump supporters and not Black Lives Matter activists and antifa.
“I knew those were people who love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law, so I wasn’t concerned,” Johnson said in a March 11 radio interview. “Now, had the tables been turned, and Joe — this is going to get me in trouble — had the tables been turned and President Trump won the election and tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter and antifa, I might have been a little concerned.”
Johnson was “amazed but not surprised” by the criticism of his comments, which were “so thoroughly” twisted, he wrote Monday in a Wall Street Journal op-ed titled “I won’t be silenced by the left.” He accused his detractors of “play[ing] the race card” because many critics said his comments were racist.
He also addressed protests and riots that took place nationally in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death.
“We should all be disgusted at the cynical way antifa and other leftists hide behind the banner of equality — a goal we all share — even as they carry signs calling for an end to America or talk of burning cities down,” the senator wrote. “It was also sadly predictable that liberals would hurl the accusation of racism. This isn’t about race. It’s about riots. The rioters who burned Kenosha weren’t of any one ethnicity; they were united by their radical leftism.”
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During the first Senate hearing on the Capitol attack, Johnson read excerpts from an article that alleged there were “plainclothes militants,” “agent-provocateurs,” and “fake Trump protesters” among the crowd.
During the riot, protesters clashed with law enforcement outside the Capitol, and many made their way inside the building. Ashli Babbitt, a 35-year-old veteran, was shot and killed by a law enforcement officer as she allegedly tried breaching a door that led to the House Chamber.
Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick died shortly after the events at the Capitol unfolded, but there are a number of questions that remain unanswered regarding his cause of death. Two have been arrested on charges of assaulting him, but it is undetermined if the alleged assault caused his death.
The Wisconsin senator has not decided whether he will run for reelection in 2022, and his seat will play a large role in determining which party will hold the majority.
