A local newspaper based in Rep. Madison Cawthorn’s home state of North Carolina is lashing out at the freshman member of Congress.
The Charlotte Observer, a left-leaning paper in the state’s largest metropolis, attacked Cawthorn as a “North Carolina embarrassment” in an editorial published on Thursday afternoon.
“Can someone please keep Madison Cawthorn away from the cameras? And the microphones? And really, most situations in which he publicly tries to turn words into meaningful thoughts?” implored the editorial board.
The editorial said the 25-year-old congressman helped incite the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill siege with his call for supporters to “lightly threaten” their members of Congress, misrepresented his eligibility for the 2020 Paralympic Games, and built a team committed more to messaging than legislating. Cawthorn’s reaction to these blunders perpetuates a vicious cycle, the board insisted.
“Cawthorn’s strategy for these kinds of mishaps? It’s apparently to keep doing interviews, which results in more head-shaking headlines and national ridicule,” the editorial said. “It’s why the North Carolina freshman is on the medal stand for worst new member of Congress.”
Cawthorn, the youngest member of Congress, represents North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. His seat was previously held by Mark Meadows, who served as chief of staff under the Trump administration.
A representative for Cawthorn did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
