House GOP Statement Vile Even For Pat Neville

16 Comments

by: Colorado Pols

Colorado House Minority Leader Patrick Neville (R).

Yesterday afternoon, the Colorado House Republican Minority released a statement we assume they thought was very strong: demanding that Democrats “outright condemn” the last several days of protests over the killing of Minneapolis resident George Floyd, and essentially accusing Democratic lawmakers of supporting the violence committed by a tiny minority of protesters:

Over the past several days, chaos has erupted in the streets of Denver while supportive Democrats have shut down the State Capitol in “solidarity” with the rioters who have attacked police officers, blocked traffic, and destroyed public and private property. Some elected Democrats have actually gone out of their way to do everything they can to block police from stopping the rioters and restoring law and order.

Even more egregious, is that Colorado Democrats and Governor Polis will take swift action against business owners who try to reopen their small businesses and make ends meet, but will give “space” to criminals who start fires in the streets, lob homemade explosives at police, and deface the State Capitol in defiance of the rule of law.

The Colorado House Republicans call on all Democrats, starting with the House and Senate Democrats, to outright condemn these rioters.

We further call on Democrats to not block the prosecution of these criminals like they did in January when rioters disrupted the opening day of the Colorado General Assembly.

It’s time that Colorado Democrats, and the liberal press who enable them, take steps to condemn what’s happening around the State Capitol and see what’s most important here — protecting the innocent from harm and restoring law and order immediately.

It’s tough to know where to begin with this statement, which seems to ignore just about every known fact about the protests of the past few days. Democrats like Rep. Leslie Herod who have led the massive and peaceful daytime protests against police violence repeatedly urged their supporters to obey the law. Rep. Herod specifically exhorted protesters to respect the curfew imposed in Denver after the second night of unrest.

And that’s just the beginning. Did riot police deploy to restaurants that illegally reopened during the COVID-19 emergency? A few dozen climate activists who super-glued themselves to the rail in the House gallery are “a riot?” House Republicans are seriously suggesting that Senate President Leroy Garcia wanted his truck destroyed?

Failing to differentiate the peaceful protests across the nation and in Denver over the weekend from the actions of a comparatively small number of hoodlums after dark shows that Republicans don’t want to address “what’s most important here,” which is police brutality against people of color. Characterizing this weekend’s protests indiscriminately as “riots” only demonstrates that platitudes Republicans offer over police brutality in the wake of a major incident, like Colorado House Republicans did last week after the death of George Floyd, are meaningless.

We’re not surprised that’s how Minority Leader Pat Neville feels, after Neville has spent pretty much every day since the 2018 elections marginalizing his caucus and sullying the Republican brand. But to see the whole GOP House minority sign this disgraceful letter…

Well, that’s pretty shocking. And we hope there are some privately delivered apologies.

16 thoughts on “House GOP Statement Vile Even For Pat Neville”

Diogenesdemar says:

June 1, 2020 at 9:35 am

Another opportunity for this idiot dupe pustule to fuel the hate and division that a fraudulent and inept, lying, buffoonish pus bag has sown daily, and abet the full weaponization of a deadly global pandemic . . .

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notaskinnycook says:

June 1, 2020 at 10:54 am

Who’s gonna tell Nutter that it was a bunch of “alt-right” thugs who pillaged and burned after the protesters were already leaving the Capitol grounds?

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Early Worm says:

June 1, 2020 at 10:54 am

The Republicans, from Trump on down, only ever seem to speak to their base anymore. No attempt ever to sound reasonable or remotely moderate. Based on the last couple of elections in Colorado, it is not working for them. It worked for Trump in 2016 (electoral college victory at least), but it does not seem like it is going to be a winning strategy in 2020.

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Meiner49er says:

June 1, 2020 at 12:04 pm

What we're seeing here is a classic talking points pivot. The economy thoroughly trashed and not likely to make a come back before November, the GOP is attempting to make this falls election into a referendum on law and order, redefining "are you better off than four years ago?" in terms of safety than financial well-being. IF they succeed, it will be brutal for Dems up and down the ticket in the midwest and south.

Democratic leaders like Denver School Board member, Tay Anderson, have the right approach. Call for peaceful protest, call for unity, and then call it off before 5pm so that it's very clear the evening rioters are others worthy of condemnation.

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MichaelBowman says:

June 1, 2020 at 12:09 pm

One of the best things on the interwebs this morning:

Violence Never Works? Really?

As much of the country burns, literally or metaphorically, it is time to face our history. Time to stop asking others to fight for their lives on our terms, and remember that it is their collective jugular vein being compressed. It is their windpipe being crushed. It is their sons and daughters being choked out and shot and beaten and profiled and harassed.

It is their liberty and freedom at stake.

But by all means, white people, please tell us all the one again about how having to wear the mask at Costco is tyranny.

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1. JohnInDenver says:
  
  June 1, 2020 at 2:12 pm
  
  But … scripture tells us to resist being a part of those with the Mask of the Beast…. "a sign that identifies those who worship the beast out of the sea ( Rev 13:1)" …
  
  So, I guess anything that kinda resembles a snorkel or scuba face mask is to shunned.
  
  /s
  
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  1. Voyageur says:
    
    June 1, 2020 at 5:38 pm
    
    Scripture also says "Resist not evil." Matthew 5 :39
    
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2. spaceman65 says:
  
  June 1, 2020 at 2:24 pm
  
  Before the protests: Hennepin County DA brings no charges, no arrests made.
  
  After the protests: Charges brought.
  
  Violence is not the solution. Until it is. And you know what's a good way to stop riots? Have cops stop murdering people of color.
  
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davebarnes says:

June 1, 2020 at 12:17 pm

When is Patrick Snivel going to contract Covid-19?

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MichaelBowman says:

June 1, 2020 at 12:22 pm

The Lincoln Project isn't missing a beat:

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1. MichaelBowman says:
  
  June 1, 2020 at 1:30 pm
  From today's Bulwark:
  We have a problem with the current president of the United States.
  
  When it comes to civil unrest, he is more arsonist than fireman.
  
  His views on extra-legal violence are problematic.
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Gilpin Guy says:

June 1, 2020 at 2:52 pm

If this were a school shooting, we would be hearing how it's not the right time to consider political solutions to gun violence or now is the time for thoughts and prayers. This is such anal thought. Where is the Christian empathy and peace? Where is the Golden Rule being applied. Such hollow people.

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1. unnamed says:
  
  June 1, 2020 at 2:59 pm
  
  Except that Minority Leader NeVile would be talking about arming teachers.
  
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Genghis says:

June 1, 2020 at 4:10 pm

Patsy Neville is an encopretic ignoramus, but he's invoking the "law and order" shibboleth that's been GOP red meat for decades. Frightened, stupid white people are ridiculously easy to play.

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1. kwtree says:
  
  June 1, 2020 at 4:32 pm
  
  If only they really believed in Law and Order. Their chosen leader, he of the orange makeup and weird hair, does not. Neither does his head of the Justice Department. Laws are for the little people, not for the elite few.
  
  I’d support a real Rule of Law Republican candidate in a heartbeat.
  
  By the way, Genghis, thanks for making me look up “encopretic”. My vocabulary word of the day.
  
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  1. harrydoby says:
    
    June 1, 2020 at 5:19 pm
    
    Believe in the Rule of Law? Certainly not the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee
    
    It’s too bad that the time in which Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) at least tried to appear reasonable ended well before he took the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee, a perch from which he is helping to ram through a generation of sometimes scantily qualified Trump-appointed judges. On Hugh Hewitt’s radio show last week, Graham dropped any pretense that he cared about a fair, impartial federal bench, calling for older Republican-appointed judges to retire immediately so that he could ram through young replacements before the election.
    
    “This is an historic opportunity,” Graham said. “We’ve put over 200 federal judges on the bench. . . . So if you’re a circuit judge in your mid-60s, late 60s, you can take senior status, now would be a good time to do that, if you want to make sure the judiciary is right of center.”
    
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