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EGACY Yesterday. Today. Tomorrow.
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INSIDE Medicaid expansion progress in Va.- 3 Open letter on ‘shameful’ D.C. event - 4 MO: “Time for true patriotism” - 5
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More than a dozen GOP state lawmakers attended rally that gave way to riots Capitol as “patriots” and later falsely claimed they were plants for antifa.
BEN PAVIOUR Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate and state Sen. Amanda Chase is facing calls to resign after attending the pro-Trump rally in Washington, D.C., olast week. Chase addressed a crowd at the event but said she departed “just in time” before a mob began to riot and force its way into the U.S. Capitol. Chase is one of more than a dozen state lawmakers from across the country who were in the nation's capital Wednesday, including newly elected West Virginia state Del. Derrick Evans, a Republican who is now facing charges after a video he live-streamed showed him entering
the Capitol building. Republican lawmakers from at least eight other states — Michigan, Missouri, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Alaska, Arizona and Illinois — were present ahead of the riot or said they departed as the mob began to storm. Two outgoing state representatives — Rep. Anthony Kern of Arizona and Rep. Vernon Jones of Georgia, who announced earlier that day he had become a Republican — were in attendance. Another Virginia lawmaker, Del. Dave LaRock, was also at the rally. In the days following the riot, Chase referred to the insurrectionists who stormed the
a post in her personal account, Chase claimed on Friday that she had been locked out of posting to her over 135,000 followers on her official Facebook page for 60 days. Amanda Chase, both a Virginia Facebook did not respond to a state senator and candidate for request for comment. governor, said she uses Facebook Chase also did not respond to multiple times a day to interact several requests for comment but with people across the state. left a statement on her personal Facebook page saying, “As a In a statement, Virginia Senate’s supporter of peaceful resistance Democratic Caucus wrote that Chase and peaceful rallies, Senator Chase “unequivocally committed insurrection.” found it ridiculous that Virginia “She galvanized domestic Senate Democrats would call for her terrorists who violated the United resignation.” States Capitol on Wednesday The Democratic Legislative afternoon through riots, destruction, Campaign Committee, a fundraising and desecration, joining them on and organizing group for state their march to Capitol Hill,” the Democrats, called for lawmakers statement said, though it did not who attended to resign or be call for Chase to be expelled from expelled. DLCC president Jessica the body — a step endorsed by some Post said in a statement that Virginia Republicans, including Republicans had “cheered on the former U.S. Rep. Barbara Comstock rioters.” and former Virginia Del. David Stami Williams, a spokesperson Ramadan. for the Republican State Leadership The acting U.S. attorney for Committee, a fundraising and the District of Columbia, Michael organizing group for Republicans, Sherwin, told reporters on Thursday said anyone who participated in that the pro-Trump extremists could illegal activity and breached the face charges of rioting, insurrection Capitol should be prosecuted. and seditious conspiracy. “The RSLC strongly condemns Two of Chase’s Facebook acts of violence, illegal entry, and posts that inaccurately blamed destruction, including those for anti-fascists for the violence on which West Virginia Delegate Wednesday were marked by the Derrick Evans has been charged,” platform as false information. In Williams said in a statement. - NPR