Dear John,

The Constitution is clear. No one who has “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the U.S. government may hold any office in the United States Congress or in state legislatures.

Yet not only have lawmakers who supported the January 6 insurrection continued to hold state and national office, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has now elevated several of them to powerful positions on the House Oversight committee. This committee’s mission is to ensure the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the federal government and all its agencies. Hello!?

This position grants them amplified megaphones for their false conspiracy theories and calls for violence against their political opponents.

New Oversight members include Reps Marjorie Taylor Greene, Paul Gosar, Lauren Boebert, and Scott Perry -- every single one of them had direct involvement in the deadly attack on the Capitol. Scott Perry even reportedly asked for a pardon for his role.

It’s not just Congress; other state level lawmakers have strong ties to the January 6 insurrection, too. State Representatives Donnie Loftis of North Carolina, Anthony Kern of Arizona, Matt Maddock of Michigan, Mike Azinger of West Virginia, and David Eastman of Alaska each must be investigated and removed, too.

The Constitution is clear, but the politics of actually removing leaders from office is not. That’s why public pressure is critical. Please join me in this call to action by signing our petition to remove insurrectionists from office now.

To describe these lawmakers as “conservative” or “extremist” misses the essence of what they’ve done and believe.

They are authoritarians who have deep contempt for American democracy.

Kevin McCarthy put these people on the Oversight Committee because he needed their votes to become Speaker. This typifies what the Republican Party has become -- a grotesque shadow of Trump, capable of stirring resentments and lies but utterly incapable of rational governance.

These demagogues on the Oversight Committee will spearhead Trump’s war against the truth of what occurred between November 3, 2020, and January 6, 2021. They will push to impeach Biden. They will try to rewrite the history of the Trump administration. They will seek to expunge Trump’s impeachment, and negate the work and findings of the January 6 select committee.

They will be the backup band for Trump’s incendiary, grievance-filled, scorched-earth campaign for re-election in 2024. And the bottom line is they will help Trump lead the fight to advance his own warped, authoritarian vision for America.

We must reject this cynicism and political thuggery. We must demand insurrectionists are barred from office! Sign on now.

Here are the facts: Greene and Gosar were previously removed from congressional committees for advocating violence against other members of Congress. Both have appeared with Nick Fuentes, the white supremacist and Holocaust denier who recently had lunch with Trump.

Greene has said if she had led the Jan. 6 attack “we would have won” and that people would have been “armed.” Gosar intimidated election officials counting ballots in Maricopa County and has spoken at Oath Keepers events. Asked if the United States was at risk of civil war, he said “we’re already in it, we just haven’t started shooting yet.”

Perry was a key figure in Trump’s attempted coup. During the attack on the Capitol, Boebert posted Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s location inside the Capitol.

At the state level, Kern bragged of being a fake elector. Social media posts appear to show Van Orden, Kern, Maddock, and Azinger behind police lines at the insurrection. Loftis wrote in a statement that he “was gassed three times and was at the entrance when they breached the door” on January 6, and Eastman traveled to DC alongside the Oath Keepers.

And that’s just what we know about. Investigations are needed to determine exactly what roles these lawmakers played in stoking and joining in the violence on January 6. Add your name now to remove insurrections from office now.

I believe in America. I believe in the power of the people. But I know that democracy is fragile and we must do everything in our power to protect and defend it.

That requires accountability.

Thank you for taking action today.

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action