GOP Rep. Mooney wants to condemn lawmakers who call on Trump to concede
December 8, 2020
Rep. Alex Mooney introduced a resolution on Tuesday to formally condemn any lawmakers who call on Donald Trump to concede “prematurely” from the presidential race despite having lost — the latest example of how Trump’s Hill allies are eager to prove their loyalty to the president.
The West Virginia Republican, a member of the hard-line House Freedom Caucus, offered the resolution during a private GOP conference call. But it has little chance of being adopted and was referred to committee since there is no requirement that the resolution receive a vote in conference.
“I call on my fellow colleagues in the House GOP Conference to join me in sending a strong, united message of support for President @realDonaldTrump,” Mooney tweeted Tuesday morning. “No Republican member should prematurely call on President Trump to concede before these investigations are complete.”
Mooney’s resolution — which would also affirm the House GOP’s support for “Trump's efforts to investigate and punish election fraud” — comes after Trump demanded to see The Washington Post’s list of 25 Republicans who have recognized Joe Biden as president-elect.
“25, wow! I am surprised there are so many. We have just begun to fight,” Trump tweeted over the weekend. “Please send me a list of the 25 RINOS. I read the Fake News Washington Post as little as possible!”
Mooney’s resolution could earn him major points with Trump and with conservatives back home in West Virginia, which is getting a new congressional map in 2022. The state’s three House seats will likely be condensed into two — and Mooney's district in the central portion of the state would be impacted.
But Mooney’s effort sparked pushback from several GOP members on the call, including Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois — one of the few Republicans who has been willing to challenge Trump’s false claims of voter fraud.
As Trump’s legal challenges have been crumbling and battleground states have been certifying Biden’s victory, Trump’s biggest supporters on Capitol Hill have been racing to show their support for the president — and he has been taking notice.
Last week, Trump publicly praised Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), who indicated he intends to challenge Biden’s Electoral College votes when they are officially certified by Congress on Jan. 6.
Several other GOP House members have signaled they will also object to the vote-counting process, though the long-shot effort won’t get out of the starting gate without a Senate sponsor. And even then, the math is virtually impossible for Trump to overturn the election results in Congress.
Source: https://www.politico.com/
