Trump put their lives in grave danger, but these Florida Republican U.S. lawmakers still idolize him | Opinion

The perennial question since former President Donald Trump entered politics has been: What will it take for Republican officials to finally walk away from him?

Were his efforts to overturn the 2020 elections the last straw? His incitement of Capitol rioters? What about the party’s under-performance in last year’s midterms?

Let a photo answer that question: A group of Florida GOP members of Congress at Mar-a-Lago, sitting in a luxurious dining room with the former president. A red Make America Great Again hat sits at the end of the table, facing the camera.

Gleefully smiling in that photo op is Miami U.S. Rep. Carlos Gimenez, the only South Florida Republican who has announced his support for Trump in the 2024 elections. All of the Congress members in attendance have endorsed Trump over Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The photo is meant to be a statement of Trump’s dominance in the state governed by his expected primary rival. But it also means there’s no harm the former president can do to end Republican sycophancy.

Of the 10 members of Congress in that photo, eight — including Gimenez — were in office at the time of the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. A U.S. House commission found last year that not only did Trump incite the insurrection and pressure federal and state officials to overturn election results, he also he knew there was violence at the Capitol for more than three hours before he agreed to intervene.

In fact, Gimenez tweeted this at 3:42 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021:

“Mr. President @realDonaldTrump please take a firm stance and help us restore order in the Capitol. This is unacceptable and dangerous. Capitol Police needs additional officers and resources now. We need you to urgently call on these protesters to disperse.”

Just hours after Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol, Gimenez voted against certifying the results of the elections in Pennsylvania and Arizona, despite there being no evidence of widespread voter fraud. A majority of the Florida GOP delegation did the same.

It’s not surprising that many Congress members now stand behind the man who reportedly didn’t care that their lives — or the lives of their colleagues — were in danger. Trump’s gravitational pull in GOP politics is known for causing amnesia or mental gymnastics among his loyalists. Only that can explain how they continue to act as if Trump had nothing to do with the terror his supporters inflicted, on his behalf, on Jan. 6.

Gimenez’ office told the Herald Editorial Board he supports Trump because the “economy was booming” during his term. Gimenez criticized President Biden for the southern border crisis, inflation and the war in Ukraine.

“Under Joe Biden, America is less safe, less prosperous, and less free. I am proud to endorse President Donald J. Trump to serve as our next Commander-In-Chief to fight socialism both at home and abroad, rebuild our economy, and to secure and protect our nation so that America continues being the freest, most exceptional country in the history of the world,” Gimenez said via a statement.

On Jan. 6, some members of Congress, who wined and dined at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach seemed to understand the seriousness of what was taking place.

“My staff has been told to shelter in place for their safety, and I am watching the scene at the Capitol unfold. While I support the constitutionally protected right for peaceful protest, some of the images I am seeing on the news do not constitute a peaceful demonstration,” tweeted Republican U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Palm Harbor.

“The violence and lawlessness we saw today was completely unacceptable. As a nation, we must do better,” U.S. Rep. Greg Steube wrote back then.

If Trump’s reported disregard for representatives of Congress won’t dissuade his supporters, then we suspect nothing will. Not a New York indictment over Trump’s alleged role in hush-money payments to a former porn star. Not the ongoing criminal investigation into his efforts to overturn his narrow defeat in Georgia. Not his continuing lies about 2020.

Not even the possibility that Trump might reject the results of fair and free elections if he makes it that far and loses in 2024.

As Trump famously said in 2016, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?” Republican officials, who swore to uphold the Constitution, unfortunately, are proving him right.