Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina explicitly said he disagrees with Donald Trump’s suggestion that the members of the House Select Committee to investigate January 6, 2021, should be jailed.
Graham, a staunch Trump supporter, told Kristen Welker of Meet the Press on Sunday that he disagrees with the presidency-elect but did not elaborate further.
“President-elect Trump told me he thinks the members of the January 6 committee should go to jail, do you agree with that statement?” Welker asked.
Graham replied, “No.”
Earlier this month, Trump told Welker during a sit-down interview that the members of the committee, which includes former representative Liz Cheney, “should go to jail” for doing their part to investigate and disclose information about the attack on the Capitol.
The president-elect inspired a violent mob of his supporters to storm and unlawfully enter the Capitol while Congress was certifying 2020 election results after spreading lies about mass voter fraud – claiming Democrats “stole” the election from him.
As a result, four people present on January 6 died while one other one died the following day.
Though Trump did not direct his supporters to storm the Capitol, evidence presented by the January 6 committee indicated he also did not stop his supporters from doing so even when other lawmakers called on him to do so.
The committee was made up of nine lawmakers: then-representatives Cheney, Adam Kizinger, Elaine Luria, Stephanie Murphy, and now-Senator Adam Schiff as well as Reps Bennie Thompson, Zoe Lofgren, Pete Aguilar, and Jamie Raskin.
Trump attacked the committee for presenting evidence and testimony that painted him as an unhinged leader trying to hold onto any form of power and control – something he rejects. He also attacked the prosecutors who charged him with federal crimes for his actions leading up to that day.
Instead, Trump claims January 6 was a day of “peace” and “love”. He’s recently promised to pardon those charged with crimes in relation to that day.
But now he also wants to go further in punishing the members of the committee.
Though Graham largely supports Trump’s agenda, he broke from the president-elect when it came to his view on January 6.
Graham voted to certify the 2020 election results and criticized his Republican colleagues who chose to do so. However, he also voted to acquit Trump during his second impeachment and voted against commissioning the January 6 committee.
Though he may not have supported the committee, Graham clearly does not believe they deserve jail time for carrying out their duties to investigate the attack on the Capitol.
