After riot, Fort Worth area lawmakers objected to President-elect Joe Biden’s victory
Fort Worth area House Republicans joined U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in objecting to the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory late Wednesday and early Thursday after President Donald Trump’s supporters rioted at the Capital earlier in the day.
On the Senate floor on Wednesday, Cruz said if he didn’t object, that would mean millions of Americans would see that voter fraud doesn’t matter to lawmakers. But at no point did Cruz provide evidence of voter fraud nor did any other Texas lawmakers.
Initially, 14 Republican senators said they would object to Electoral College votes in key states like Arizona and Pennsylvania, but after the riot, that number dwindled. But, Republican Reps. Ron Wright of Arlington, Michael Burgess of Denton, Beth Van Duyne of Irving and Roger Williams of Austin did not back down and voted to object to Pennsylvania’s votes.
Rep. Kay Granger, a Republican from Fort Worth, did not vote as she is recovering from coronavirus, but previously said it was time to move on from the presidential election. In a statement on Thursday, Granger condemned the attack on the Capitol and, as the lead Republican on the House Appropriations Committee, said she will hold bipartisan hearings to address the security breach and ensure that America does not experience such a dark day again.
Sen. John Cornyn voted to certify the Electoral College votes, citing that there was no evidence of voter fraud.
Van Duyne was the only Texas House Republican to certify Arizona’s votes and said in a statement that she objected to Pennsylvania’s votes because it was clear to her that the state conducted an unconstitutional election through executive and court actions.
The Pennsylvania Legislature expanded mail-in voting in 2019 with overwhelming Republican support. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the statute, and the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a Republican congressman’s lawsuit seeking to reverse the certification of Biden’s victory in the state.
While violence was the center of attention at the Capitol, that didn’t change the fact that election laws were broken, Wright said, without offering evidence of when and where laws were violated.
Burgess, without offering specific evidence, said there was unprecedented voting irregularities, overreach by government bureaucrats, and a lack of ballot integrity and security.
Williams, whose district stretches from southern Tarrant County to Austin, said his objection was a statement for “free and fair elections” and not an attempt to overturn the results.
Cruz wanted an election commission to conduct an emergency 10-day audit in Arizona and Pennsylvania. Trump’s claims of voter fraud have been dismissed by election officials, courts and former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr.
Democrats have partially blamed Cruz for Wednesday’s violence, have asked for his resignation and have called him a traitor. A change.org petition with over 15,000 signatures asks for Cruz’s resignation.
Democrat Beto O’Rourke, who narrowly lost to Cruz in 2018, wrote on Twitter that Cruz’s attempt at sedition inspired the pro-Trump extremists and their attempt at a coup. Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro of San Antonio tweeted that Cruz should immediately resign. Texas House Rep. Joe Moody, an El Paso Democrat, said Cruz is an “embarrassment to Texas.”
Cruz responded to O’Rourke saying he should stop stoking division, stop spreading hatred and stop with the false accusation of sedition.
In a statement, Cruz said there will be a peaceful transition of power.
Cruz’s efforts to see the objections through despite criticism from both parties is a sign that he wants to secure votes from the Trump-supporting camp, said Mark Jones, a political science professor at Rice University. Cruz will want to run for president and used the voter fraud narrative for political gain, he said.
But Jones believes the riot hurts Cruz in the eyes of those who don’t strictly vote Republican.
Voting against the certification doesn’t hurt Wright, Burgess or Williams that much, Jones said, because most of their constituents voted for Trump.
Thomas Marshall, a political science professor at UT Arlington, believes the Texas lawmakers won’t suffer politically because of their objections. The next election will be in 2022 and voters have a short memory, he said. Voters will be worried about the issues at the time.
“This little flurry fades away in a few days,” Marshall said. “President Biden will be in office and we all move on to the next crisis.”
