At a Republican party meeting in Montrose last night, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert appeared to defend those who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, saying, “We already see in Washington, D.C., you can’t petition your government, you’re an insurrectionist if you do that.”
Boebert’s jaw-dropping statement came towards the end of a longwinded diatribe on “cancel culture,” which began with a Biblical analogy about the persecution of the Hebrews before comparing them to modern-day Democrats she claims want to cancel both Christianity and the Bill of Rights.
“So what amendment is next?” Boebert asked rhetorically. “We already see in Washington, D.C., you can’t petition your government, you’re an insurrectionist if you do that!
The office that I sit in, in the Longworth Building in our nation’s capital isn’t my office. That’s your office. You pay for that office and Nancy Pelosi won’t let you come and petition your government. Speak to me in your office, how disgraceful is that?”
Boebert’s office did not immediately respond to an email request for comment. This article will be updated with any response received.
UPDATE: Following publication, Boebert’s Communications Director Ben Stout issued the following statement:
“Rep. Boebert’s remarks were not referencing the events of January 6th, which Rep. Boebert has repeatedly condemned (see her tweet where she said, “I support…the rule of law, and denounce all acts of violence.”)
Her remarks last night were criticizing the fact that Americans are not allowed to meet with their elected representatives since the Capitol is still surrounded by razor wire. The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) informed the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) on March 15th that ‘there does not exist a known, credible threat against Congress or the Capitol Complex that warrants the temporary security fencing.’”
Boebert’s mention of her office and Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in reference to the ongoing security measures in place around the Capitol complex, due to the threats posed by extremists who believe the conspiracy theory that the election was stolen from former President Trump. The National Guard troops currently stationed in D.C. are there at the request of the U. S. Capitol Police, the law enforcement agency responsible for security at the Complex. The request to extend the deployment follows the discovery of a plot by “Three Percenter” extremist militia members to attack the Capitol.
Stout also noted that the above plot was intended to take place on Mar. 4, and that yesterday’s letter from the USCP indicates there is no longer an immediate threat against Comgress.
During Boebert’s campaign, she not only expressed her support of the far-right militia movement, but coordinated with them locally, requesting and receiving “security help” from militia members at campaign events.
Following the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, during which the Congresswoman and her mother were both inside the complex, Boebert faced considerable criticism for live-tweeting the location of House members, including Speaker Pelosi, while armed insurrectionists marauded through the halls of Congress.
Federal law enforcement continues to investigate cell phone records showing communication between insurrectionists and some elected officials inside the Capitol on Jan. 6. Presumably because of her tweets, Boebert is one of a handful of Republican lawmakers whose names are linked to the investigation, but she has denied any involvement in the attack.
Video of her entire speech to the Montrose Republican Party was posted to Facebook by the Montrose Daily Press. The event was hosted by the Turn of the Century Saloon in Montrose and attended by a near-capacity and almost entirely unmasked crowd.
The Boebert campaign circulated an announcement of the event to local Republican groups, but then asked them not to share it on social media “for security purposes.”
