Dan Rather Blasts GOP: What’s Taking You So Long To Show Guts And Hold Trump Accountable?

On the heels of the firing of now-former FBI Director James Comey, legendary newsman Dan Rather has a question for Republicans: What’s taking you so long to show some guts and hold the administration accountable for what appears to be a massive cover-up?

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On MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews, Rather said Trump’s move to fire Comey was a “smoke screen” and the Russia scandal clearly warrants an independent commission with a special prosecutor.

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Rather said:

[The Comey firing], it’s smoke screen, it’s cover. I’ll be very surprised if it fools very many among the American people. … What’s needed here are some Republican leaders. Republicans have the White House, they have the Supreme Court, they have the Congress. This is going to require some Republican officeholders with guts who say to themselves, “I want the Trump administration to succeed, I want my party to succeed, but more importantly, I want to do what’s good for the country.” And they know, in that secret place behind their hearts that what’s good for the country is an independent, bipartisan commission with a special prosecutor. 

Once again, Rather is spot on in his objective analysis. The American people will not be fooled or distracted by Trump’s firing of Comey, and it’s time for GOP lawmakers to recognize that a scandal of this magnitude – and a cover-up to match it – is not a partisan issue.

This is not a political football to be framed by either side to score some cheap points. It’s an investigation into whether American democracy was hijacked by a foreign government with the help of a major party presidential campaign.

If Republicans can’t put democracy first, as Rather said, they must step aside and let an independent commission do what they’re too cowardly to do.

Sean Colarossi

Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.