New GOP Representative Blames Both Parties for Fueling Violence Amid Impeachment Push

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) talks to supporters during her election night party in Mount Pleasant, S.C., on Nov. 3, 2020. (Mic Smith/AP PhotoR

Newly-elected Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said that both Republicans and Democrats contributed to the Capitol breach and violence on Jan. 6, saying their inflamed rhetoric over the past several years has contributed to a significant partisan divide.

Mace, who was sworn into office just days earlier, delivered the remarks on a discussion of House rules before a vote on whether or not to impeach President Donald Trump following the Capitol building breach that promoted both chambers of Congress to call a recess as members fled the scene.

“I believe we need to hold the president accountable,” Mace remarked. “I hold him accountable for the events that transpired, for the attack on our Capitol last Wednesday. I also believe that we need to hold accountable every single person, even members of Congress if they contributed to the violence that transpired here.”

Both the Senate and House should be accountable for their words and actions to help the United States heal, she said.

“Today I’m asking my colleagues to remember the words of the legendary, the great leader in this country, Dr. Martin Luther King, who once said, ‘The time is always right to do what is right.’ And if we’re serious about healing the divisions in this country, Republicans and Democrats need to acknowledge this is not the first day of violence we’ve seen,” Mace said. “We’ve seen violence across our country for the last nine months.”

Mace was likely referring to the riots and violence over the summer of 2020 after the death of George Floyd. Cities such as Minneapolis, Chicago, New York, Seattle, Portland, and others were beset with nightly protests and looting. Portland and Seattle, meanwhile, had their own “autonomous zones” filled with left-wing anarchists.

“And we need to recognize, number one, that our words have consequences; that there is violence on both sides of the aisle,” Mace remarked. “We’ve contributed to it. We need to take responsibility for our words and our actions, we need to acknowledge there’s a problem, take responsibility for it, and stop being part of the problem and start being part of the solution.”

Trump, for his part, said that what he said on Jan. 6 during a “Stop the Steal” rally was appropriate, in remarks that came after Big Tech firms moved to delete his accounts.

“People thought that what I said was totally appropriate,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. “We want no violence … absolutely no violence,” he said.

“People thought that what I said was totally appropriate and if you look at what other people have said, politicians at a high level, about the riots in the summer, the horrible riots in Portland and Seattle and various other places, that was the real problem,” Trump remarked.