Retiring Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) admitted that his biggest regret while serving in Congress was not voting to impeach Trump the first time.
Kinzinger tweeted:
2) It’s important for political leaders to be transparent and admit regret when needed. The bottom line, Donald Trump withheld lethal aid to Ukraine so he could use it as leverage for his campaign. This is a shameful and illegal act, directly hurting the Ukraine defense today…
— Adam Kinzinger #fella (@AdamKinzinger) March 12, 2022
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3) I wish i could go back in time and Vote for it, but I cannot. What we can do now is to ensure that this NEVER happens again, and that we all put the interests of our nation above our party. @AVindman and others deserve our appreciation.
— Adam Kinzinger #fella (@AdamKinzinger) March 12, 2022
People immediately brought up on Twitter that he voted against the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, but that is to be expected. Adam Kinzinger is a Republican. The position of the Republican Party is anti-voting rights.
However, on the issue of protecting democracy, Kinzinger is an ally. The fight to protect democracy is more important than any other single issue because without democracy, none of us will have voting rights.
None of the other issues matter if the American people aren’t living in a democracy where they can have the right to self-determination.
The fight to protect democracy should be bigger than any partisan identification. Voting rights are a part of a democracy, but they aren’t democracy itself. There are fundamental rights like the right to protest, and the right to criticize the government which Americans take for granted that are also in jeopardy.
Kinzinger should have voted for the first Trump impeachment, and Republicans in the Senate should have voted to convict Trump.
The indifferent and failed COVID response that unnecessarily killed hundreds of thousands of Americans could have been prevented. The 1/6 attack on the Capitol would have never happened if Trump had been convicted and removed from office.
Republicans are responsible for much of the death and suffering in the United States because they looked the other way when it came to Trump.
Unlike the rest of his party, at least Kinzinger is willing to admit that he made a mistake.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
