News

Sen. Edwards is 'incredibly concerned' about Cawthorn's conduct

By Lightning Reports, Published: January 12, 2021

State Sen. Chuck Edwards said in a statement Tuesday that he is "incredibly concerned"  by U.S. Rep. Cawthorn's part in stirring up emotions of Trump supporters in the days and hours before the Capitol building riot that left five people dead.

"There's a right way and wrong way to conduct yourself as a legislator, and I'm incredibly concerned about Congressman Cawthorn's conduct," Edwards said. "Like many people, I share serious concerns about Americans' confidence in our election system's integrity. I intend to work with my colleagues in Raleigh this year to pass legislation to address the concerns I hear from North Carolinians.
"Congressman Cawthorn's inflammatory approach of encouraging people to 'lightly threaten' legislators not only fails to solve the core problem of a lack of confidence in the integrity of our elections system. It exacerbates the divisions in our country and has the potential to needlessly place well-meaning citizens, law enforcement officers, and elected officials in harm's way. As a
legislator, I don't need to be threatened to do the job the voters hired me to do."

In a statement Monday, Cawthorn's office said he condemns violence but defends his right to challenge electoral votes when questions remain.

"Cawthorn has condemned the abhorrent violence on January 6," the statement said. "He has criticized President Trump for directing protestors toward the Capitol and repeatedly told protestors that the legal pathway to address their concerns was through debate on the house floor, by their elected representatives, not violence in the streets of the Capital. Principled conservatives disagreed about the 2020 election. But debating whether Congress should accept or reject electoral votes in states that may have ignored their own laws was entirely appropriate and legal under our Constitution."