Nassau GOP silent as democracy is attacked

One of the many things that stand out in the 45-page indictment fled against former President Donald Trump last week detailing his attempt to overturn the 2020 election is the people who have provided the evidence – Republicans.

This includes the former vice president, senior leaders of the Justice Department, the director of National Intelligence, the director of the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity Agency, senior White House attorneys, senior stafers on Trump’s 2020-election campaign, and state legislators and offcials, according to the indictment.

Some voluntarily appeared as early as the House Jan. 6 committee. Others had to be subpoenaed by the special counsel. But all were Republicans, including many appointed by Trump who hurt their professional careers by testifying.

They provided the evidence in the indictment fled by Special Counsel Jack Smith in Federal District Court in Washington showing three conspiracies — to defraud the United States; to obstruct an ofcial government proceeding to certify the Electoral College vote; and to deprive people of a civil right to have their votes counted.

Trump was also charged with a fourth count of obstructing or attempting to obstruct an ofcial proceeding.

The indictment details how Trump lost the 2020 presidential election, knew he failed to win re-election, but in an effort to remain in power spread lies that he knew were false in an efort to overturn the 2020 presidential election – “a bedrock function of the United States government.”

In other words, Trump attempted a coup. Doubt us? Read the indictment.

We are thankful for the Republicans who stood up to defend this country’s democracy.

We wish we could say the same for the many Republicans in Congress in New York and across the country who stayed silent or even defended Trump.

Ignoring what many witnessed in person, GOP members of Congress have downplayed the indictment as they have two previous indictments against Trump – over hush money in New York and classifed documents in Mar-a-Lago.

House leader Kevin McCarthy (RCA) called Jan. 6 his “saddest day” in Congress and said Trump “bears responsibility” for what happened at the time.

But following the Jan. 6 indictment McCarthy sought to defect the public’s attention by pointing to House eforts to investigate President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, over the family’s fnances, which has yet to fnd any wrongdoing.

New York Republicans, including all Long Island GOP ofcials, have remained mum on the Jan. 6 indictment with the exception of U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, an upstate Republican who is seen as a possible running mate for Trump.

“Today is yet another dark day in America as Joe Biden continues to weaponize his corrupt Department of Justice against his leading political opponent,” Stefanik said in a statement on Twitter.

This is simply untrue.

Unlike Trump, Biden has not been seen to have any role in the operations of the Justice Department.

Stefanik apparently forgets how Trump incited a mob to attack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 as part of his efort to stop the counting of the vote and overturn the election. Do the rest of the state’s Republicans feel the same?

Stefanik’s comment is yet another attack by the GOP on the FBI, the Justice Department and the courts in America. This from a party that once touted itself as the party of law and order.

GOP Reps. Anthony D’Esposito (NY4) and George Santos (NY-3), whose districts include all or some of Nassau County, are among the many Republicans missing by saying nothing yet about the indictments against Trump.

The Republicans’ silence on the Jan. 6 indictments is in contrast with their response to the 37-count indictment fled against Trump for allegedly stealing documents belonging to the American people from the White House and bringing them to his beach club at Mara-Lago.

22 Planting Field Road, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577 Phone: 516-307-1045

The documents included nuclear secrets and military plans for an attack on Iran, which were stored in ballrooms, storage rooms and bathrooms at the resort.

The charges, which stem from the Espionage Act, include obstruction of justice, willful retention of national defense information and more recently a scheme to conceal security footage from investigators.

Trump has repeatedly said the Presidential Records Act of 1978 gives him the right to keep the records. This is the opposite of the truth. The act “establishes public ownership of all presidential records.”

Did New York Republicans point this out? Did they criticize Trump for violating federal law and jeopardizing some of the nation’s most sensitive national secrets?

No, they slammed the indictment as a Democratic “witch hunt” intended to sway the 2024 election.

Long Island Rep. Nick Laota (NY-1) tried to minimize the charges by pointing to former presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton’s email server.

Former Trump-endorsed New York gubernatorial candidate and Congressman Lee Zeldin – who has already backed the 45th president’s third White House bid – accused the Department of Justice of “double standards.”

D’Esposito, a former New York City detective who has repeatedly cited his support of law and order, remained relatively tight-lipped on the conspiracy charges to overturn the presidential election.

“While our ofce continues to monitor the situation, [the] congressman’s focus remains on delivering meaningful tax relief to New Yorkers and fghting for safe streets,” spokesperson Matt Capp told The New York Post.

Somehow we don’t see how ignoring charges that the former president stole nuclear secrets and stored them at his beach club makes us safer.

And why no comment from Republicans on an attack on the Capitol in which more than 40 police ofcers were injured and the lives of members of Congress and the vice president were threatened?

Santos, who has proclaimed innocence in the face of a 13-count federal indictment for fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and false statements, took a tougher stand in defense of Trump.

“Another indictment of President Donald J. Trump will not gaslight the American People into abandoning the greatest champion of freedom this great young nation has ever known.” Santos tweeted on his campaign account.

Santos was present at the “Stop the Steal” rally at which Trump urged attendees to march on the Capitol. The congressman said he later gave money to lawyers defending those charged on the assault on the capitol.

D’Esposito was more critical of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, prior to the New York DA’s announcing a 34-county indictment against Trump for lying on his business records about a $130,000 hush-money payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels in the fnal days of the 2016 presidential campaign.

D’Esposito called the DA’s action to enforce laws against fling false business statements in the fnance capital of the world a “political witch” hunt Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who served as the Nassau County Republican Party’s liaison to the Trump campaign in 2020, described the then-expected indictment against former Trump as a “political and malicious prosecution” – fve days before it was announced by Bragg.

But Blakeman has said nothing about the espionage charges or the Jan. 6 indictments against the man he sought to elect.

His silence is unacceptable. So is the silence of D’Esposito, Santos and the other New York congressmen on the conspiracy Trump is charged with leading to overturn the 2020 election.

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