Reactions to Jan. 6 anniversary show partisan divide

Gary White, The Ledger
·2 min read
Polk's U.S. House representatives, from left, Scott Franklin, Greg Steube and Darren Soto
Polk's U.S. House representatives, from left, Scott Franklin, Greg Steube and Darren Soto

The partisan divide over the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was apparent on the event’s one-year anniversary.

U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, one of three Polk County representatives forced by a mob to flee the House chambers a year ago, spoke during an observance Thursday night in Osceola County.

Related: At small Lakeland vigil, relatives of Jan. 6 defendants decry prosecutions

Also: Judge refuses to jail Lakeland Capitol riot suspect ahead of his wedding celebration

Like virtually all Republican members of Congress, Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Lakeland, and Rep. Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, did not participate in any public events to mark the anniversary of the insurrection.

Soto, appearing at an evening gathering in Kissimmee, spoke about his experience of the attack.

A man in military-style gear riles up members of the crowd around him on the National Mall in Washington on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. A rally for President Donald Trump supporters opposing the 2020 election results preceded an attack on the U.S. Capitol.
A man in military-style gear riles up members of the crowd around him on the National Mall in Washington on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. A rally for President Donald Trump supporters opposing the 2020 election results preceded an attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“I was in the chamber when the insurrectionists came,” Soto said, according to a report from WESH. “Bang! Bang! Bang!. ‘Get down,’ the orders rang. Gunshots, flash bombs, tear gas. What sounds these were I still don't fully comprehend to this day, as our Capitol Police stood as sentinels to protect us.”

Steube appeared on Newsmax and rebutted a statement from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, describing Jan. 6 as “a violent terrorist attack.”

“I don't believe it was a terrorist attack,” Steube said. “I believe that every single person that entered that Capitol and violated federal law should be held accountable for the decisions and the actions that they took on that day."

Previously: U.S. Reps. Scott Franklin, Greg Steube oppose bill to create Jan. 6 commission

Steube also tweeted in response to a statement from Vice President Kamala Harris, in which she compared the Capitol breach to the Pearl Harbor attack and the 9/11 attacks.

“Today @VP (Harris) made history as a national disgrace,” Steube tweeted. “Nearly 3,000 people died on 9/11, and about 2,400 were killed at the attack of Pearl Harbor. Her blatant disregard for the legitimacy of those tragedies by correlating them to 1/6 is reprehensible.”

Franklin did not make any public statements about the anniversary of the insurrection.

Catherine Price, Chair of the Polk County Democratic Executive Committee, expressed that many Republicans seem to be downplaying the seriousness of the Jan. 6 mayhem.

“If the shoe had been on the other foot and it had been liberal Democrats or Black Lives Matter or somebody like that in the Capitol, that would not be their take on this,” she said. “We would have been, like, the most horrible people that ever walked the planet. … So I think it's just absurd to call these people patriots and all this kind of stuff. It's really ridiculous.”

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Local reactions to Jan 6 anniversary show partisan divide