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Some Republicans in Congress need to explain why they did not more strongly condemn President Donald Trump’s false election claims ahead of the U.S. Capitol riot, GOP pollster and strategist Frank Luntz told CNBC on Thursday.
“I think Republicans have a long way to go now to mend this breach,” Luntz said on “Squawk Box.” “They have a lot to do to explain why they did not oppose the president before that, why these protests were allowed to get out of hand like this.”
Riots on Capitol Hill erupted Wednesday afternoon after Trump supporters came to Washington to protest Congress’s finalization of the November presidential election results. Trump encouraged the rally, tweeting about it for weeks, including a December 19 post when he declared the protest “will be wild.”
In a speech at the rally on Wednesday morning, Trump continued to push his baseless narrative that he would have defeated President-elect Joe Biden had it not been for widespread electoral fraud. He again vowed never to concede the election to Biden. “We will stop the flight,” he said as he stepped onto the stage.
Although Trump supporters’ violation of the United States Capitol interrupted the finalization of the Electoral College vote for hours, the House and Senate finally resumed their sessions to confirm Biden’s victory early Thursday morning. Some Republicans have always opposed Biden’s victories in Arizona and Pennsylvania – but some GOP senators, like Kelly Loeffler, who lost her seat in Georgia, reversed their positions in the wake of the riots.
“It’s a bad time for this country. It’s a bad time for the People’s House. It’s a bad time for the Republican Party,” Luntz said. “This morning, I know there are a lot of people who have a lot of regret on their hands, and I hope the person who regrets it the most is the President of the United States.”
Shortly after Congress finalized Biden’s victory, Trump said in a statement that there would be an “orderly transition” of power. However, he again erroneously stated that “the facts” support his claim that he lost to Biden purely through large-scale electoral fraud.
Luntz warned of problems for the Republican Party even before Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, prompting its evacuation and the suspension of a constitutionally mandated session. On Tuesday, he said “the next 48 hours will be among the worst for the GOP,” referring to the Georgia Senate run-off and plans by some Republicans to oppose Electoral College votes.
The two Georgia Democrats are expected to defeat their GOP opponents, according to projections by NBC News, which would give the Democratic Party a majority in the Senate. “It’s a lesson for the Republican Party of what is likely to happen if it continues to behave in this manner,” Luntz said Wednesday morning in response to Georgia’s results.
Luntz doubled down on his outlook on Thursday: “We have never seen a situation where Americans – Americans – attack their critical institution and I think that’s going to have repercussions among swing voters.”
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