At this writing, none of Minnesota’s Republican delegation has publicly stated that Joe Biden will be our next president. Since Rep. Pete Stauber is my congressman, I will focus on him.
He knows the lies spun by President Donald Trump are complete folly. He fully knows who won the election. But he has chosen silence. The game he is playing is not harmless. Trump cannot destroy democracy by himself. But Trump with help surely can.
Adolf Hitler killed few with his own hands. But he spread the lies about Jewish people and fanned the flames of hatred. Thousands of his followers became murderers of innocent people based upon those lies. He could not have done it alone. If those lies had been doused, he would not have succeeded.
Trump’s lies are dangerous as well and are beginning to foment violent words and actions in addition to undermining the bedrock of our democracy. A group of armed protesters showed up at the home of Michigan’s secretary of state to protest the election result. A lawyer for Trump suggested that Christopher Krebs, Trump’s former cybersecurity director, be “drawn and quartered.” A pro-Trump pastor said he wants journalists shot. Election workers have been threatened.
The silence of our elected Republican officials has allowed these lies to spread, grow, and intensify. They have allowed violent rhetoric to escalate, and there is now real danger that someone will be hurt or killed.
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Rep. Stauber was elected to a second term in the exact same election that resulted in President-elect Biden’s win. He is tardy in demonstrating that he is capable of the leadership we should expect from our representatives. If he stays silent, it is clear he has chosen to be one of the helpers President Trump needs to continue his lies.
Lynn MacLean
Duluth
