Washington State Democratic Party Chair Tina Podlodowski on Congressional GOP leadership vote

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 12, 2021

SEATTLE — Washington State Democratic Party Chair Tina Podlodowski offered the following statement on Congressional House Republicans voting to remove Rep. Liz Cheney from caucus leadership after her statements that President Joe Biden fairly won the 2020 presidential election:

“Nobody’s going to mistake me for a political supporter of Rep. Liz Cheney. However, what Congressional Republicans are doing in their internal leadership right now is a hard look at the lies, utter loyalty to Trump, and conspiratorial mania gripping their party. Apparently, it’s now such a sin in the Republican Party to admit the truth about the 2020 election that doing so will get you kicked out of your leadership position in Congress.

“We can’t pretend like adherence to these bogus conspiracies is just a Washington D.C. problem. Here in Washington State, GOP Congressional candidate Loren Culp still hasn’t admitted that he lost the 2020 gubernatorial election fair and square. The Washington State and King County Republican parties are still pushing their ‘election integrity committee’ that promotes debunked right-wing conspiracy theories from the likes of Sidney Powell. Republicans in the legislature like Doug Ericksen still propose their bills to end all-mail voting and make it harder for folks to have their voices heard in our elections. 

“We all need to admit the truth – despite many members still COVID-deniers, the Republican Party is indeed ill right now, but with a different virus. They are infected with a belief that they must stay loyal to an internal worldview that’s completely disconnected from reality and tied to the venality of Donald Trump. Any Republican elected officials who admit the truth publicly are threatened and punished – meanwhile, their plan to win elections is to suppress the vote and gerrymander districts rather than to run on real policy ideas and proposals. This is not a healthy political party and it’s not a responsible way to campaign. Voters, elected officials, and opinion leaders need to demand better from the Republican Party.”

###