Senator Mitch McConnell ignored Senator Mitt Romney’s advanced warning about the threat of violence on January 6, 2021, including talk about Romney himself.
Mitt Romney warned McConnell of the coming violence on 6/1.
In an excerpt from McCay Coppins’ upcoming biography titled Romney: a reckoning , it has emerged that Romney received advance warning from Angus King that the Pentagon has received reports of right-wing extremists planning threats of violence on June 1, including storming the Capitol, gunrunning, bombs and “attacking the traitors in Congress responsible for this travesty. Romney’s name has been popping up in some scary corners of the internet, which is why King had to talk to him. He’s not sure Romney will be safe.”
He sent a text to Mitch McConnell, who never responded.
Romney sends his text: “In case you haven’t heard, I just got a call from Angus King who said he spoke to a senior Pentagon official reporting that they are seeing very disturbing traffic on social media about the protests. scheduled on the 6th. There are calls to burn your house down, Mitch; to smuggle weapons into DC and storm the Capitol. “I hope there are adequate security plans in place, but I worry that the instigator – the president – is the one in command of the reinforcements that the DC and Capitol Police might need.”
McConnell never responds.
A pause in which we appreciate the seriousness of the betrayal of the Senate leader of the party, who did not even respond to warnings from the Pentagon about the threat to the life of a party member. This is such a profound dereliction of duty, both morally and politically, that it is no surprise that Romney does not want to continue as senator, where he is at best isolated and ignored by his own party. Worse still, he isn’t even worthy of a response when violence is threatened against him.
The horror of the attack is worth reading, especially since it has been reviewed as nothing by Republicans and many in the media. Perhaps there were tourists who felt strongly about the election and simply wanted their votes counted – a strange excuse for people who used violence to try to prevent the majority of American votes from being counted and mattering.
Romney receives a notification on his phone on June 1: “They are on the Western Front and have broken barriers.”
As he pushed open the doors at the back of the Senate chamber, he was surprised by the “strange, unsettling silence that had engulfed the deserted hallway… when he suddenly saw a Capitol Police officer sprinting toward him at full speed.”
“Go back inside!” the officer bellowed without interruption. “You’re safer in the room.”
Romney turned and started running.
He made it back in time to hear the gavel fall and see several men – probably Secret Service agents – rush into the room without explanation and take the vice president out. Then suddenly the chamber descended into chaos: A man in a neon sash bellowed from the middle of the Senate floor about a security breach. Officials rushed around the room in panic, slamming the doors and barking at senators to move further inside until they could be evacuated.
This information raises many questions, such as why did Mitch McConnell ignore Mitt Romney’s warning? Did McConnell relay that warning to anyone? Why doesn’t anyone investigate why there was no help for law enforcement that day, when so many people in positions of power knew that the right was planning a day of terror?
As the Senate chamber was under siege, Romney’s frustration with his party overcame his Cranbrook politeness: “He turned to Josh Hawley, who was huddled with some of his right-wing colleagues, and started shouting. Later, Romney would struggle to remember the exact wording of his rebuke. Sometimes he remembers shouting, “You’re the reason this is happening!” Other times it would be a little more succinct: “You did this.” At least one reporter in the room said he saw the senator throw his hands in the air in a fit of anger as he shouted, “This is what you got, guys!” Whatever the words, the sentiment was clear: this violence, this crisis, this attack on democracy – this is your fault.”
If you didn’t put your money on Mitt Romney, the infamous flip-flopper who is the backbone of American democracy within the Republican Party, you are not alone. But it is impossible not to feel the fear and terror he experienced that day, under a deadly, violent attack, incited by his own party leader and president and ignored by his Senate leader. It’s even harder not to feel sorry for his family, who were already worried about him, who must have watched this happen on their TVs with increasing fear and despair.
Mitch McConnell has done serious damage to trust in government and corrupted the procedural processes of the US Senate for partisan gain, especially since the era of Republican obstruction in 2008.
There has also been no accountability for McConnell. Perhaps that’s because, as this excerpt indicates, he excels at telling people what they want to hear. And while this piece doesn’t mention the press, I feel confident adding the media to the list because their questions have been answered time and time again with a glib spin that seems to answer the question while actually questioning its validity is denied by slipping unscathed from any attempt at responsibility.
McConnell has undermined norms and procedures that were taken for granted until his arrival. He has unashamedly turned the Senate into a political war zone. He always has a clever response with a new line explaining why he’s grabbing more power and taking over the power the voters have given away to his opponents, but the overarching story of his career has been the destruction of democracy.
The day he ignored the warnings about 1/6 brings his other shortcomings into sharper focus, and raises questions about why there was no help on 1/6, since even Mitch McConnell and the Pentagon were aware of the right-wing plots .