Republicans disputing election were concerned about family safety: Lawmaker
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People line up to buy guns and ammunition at the Ready Gunner gun store on January 10, 2021 in Orem, Utah. / AFP /
The Republicans disputing the US 2020 presidential result were concerned about their families' safety, says a lawmaker.
According to Press TV, Michigan Republican Rep. Peter Meijer said in an interview with the libertarian magazine Reason that the lawmakers "had legitimate concerns about the safety of their families. They felt that that vote would put their families in danger."
He added that they knew in their "heart of hearts that they should've voted to certify," but voted to support objections to the results of election results in Pennsylvania and Arizona.
Meijer noted that some GOP members are responsible for the protesters' deadly breach of US Capitol, where the lawmakers were busy certifying the victory of President-elect Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
"Some of my colleagues in Congress, they share responsibility for that. Many of them were fundraising off of this Stop the Steal grift," he said, adding that the protesters "were being lied to... being misled."
There were, meanwhile, growing efforts to either remove Trump or persuade him to resign before his tenure ends on January 20.
"I think the best way for our country... is for the president to resign and go away as soon as possible," Pennsylvania Republican Senator Pat Toomey said. "It does not look as though there is the will or the consensus to exercise the 25th amendment option. And I don't think there's time to do an impeachment. There's ten days left before the president leaves anyway. I think the best thing would be a resignation."
The lawmaker suggested that Trump should never be allowed to run for office again.
"I think the president has disqualified himself from ever certainly serving in office again," Toomey told CNN. "I don't think he's electable in any way, and I don't think that he's going to be exercising anything like the kind of influence like he's had over the Republican Party going forward."
The GOP senator called for accountability in the wake of the pro-Trump activists' breach of the Capitol, which left five dead and property damaged.
"I think there's also the possibility of criminal liability here," Toomey said. "There should be accountability here."
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