Law professor Jonathan Turley wrote on Thursday condemning how Democratic groups and commentators are seeking to remove as many as 120 Republicans from ballots in the name of democracy. Turley is nationally recognized for his objectivity and impartiality, earning his newsletter, Res Ipsa Loquitur, an astounding 55 million subscribers.
Turley explained plans to allege that dozens of sitting Republican officeholders participated in what accusers characterize as an insurrection – the 1/6/21 Capitol Building incursion — thereby supposedly disqualifying themselves from office under an obscure provision of the Constitution. That would be like burning books in the name of literacy, Turley wrote, and destroying democracy in order to save democracy.
Turley should consider Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s comments because Pritzker would go further. On Thursday’s 1/6 anniversary, Pritzker wrote this on Twitter:
A year ago today we witnessed a vicious attack on our Capitol and democracy. We can’t sweep the events of Jan. 6 under the rug, and we can’t allow insurrectionists to rewrite history. The facts of that day cannot be up for debate. And those who deny them cannot hold office.
Got that? Agree to the facts as Pritzker sees them or you cannot hold office. Note that Pritzker apparently wouldn’t even require participation in the alleged insurrection to bar somebody from office. Instead, you and everybody else should be barred from office merely if you see the facts differently.
Keep in mind that Pritzker is a lawyer. In fact, Northwestern University’s law school is named the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law thanks to his contributions there, and he is an alumnus.
In light of Pritzker’s status there, perhaps Northwestern could invite him to give an honorary lecture explaining how his bar from office would survive a constitutional challenge. Turley is a Northwestern Law grad, too, so he’d no doubt be thrilled to attend.
Maybe Pritzker’s statement would make even House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blush. She gave extensive comments on Thursday about the need to “preserve the narrative” that 1/6 was not a riot but an insurrection and an actual rebellion. Turley wrote separately about Pelosi’s comments. But preserving the narrative apparently isn’t enough for Pritzker. Merely debating it should disqualify anybody from office as he sees things.
Finally, since this is ultimately about accepting election results, it’s ironic that Pritzker served as national co-chair of Hillary Clinton’s campaign in light of her views on that. She called Trump an “illegitimate” president and her organization tried to convince Electoral College members committed to Trump to vote for her instead. She also advised Joe Biden during his campaign that, should he lose the vote count, he should never concede “under any circumstances.”
The modern American left, that represents no more than 30% of America but which controls most of the federal government and many states like Illinois and includes the likes of Pritzker, holds a vision of America unrecognizable to most of us. They must be defeated at any price.