Democrats have ‘done more in the past four years to divide this country than any time since before the Civil War’

I am responding to the article “Lawmakers from both parties must come together ... to help America out of these dark days” dated January 8, 2021.

I find it ironic that Rep. Josh Gottheimer states that “... lawmakers should come together and commit to unity, civility and a loyalty to truth...” when his party has done more in the past four years to divide this country than any time since before the Civil War.

Gottheimer voted for the impeachment of President Trump in January 2020 over a phone call that lacked an impeachable offense. This farce of an impeachment was after a three-year investigation for “Russian collusion” brought forth by the Democrats due a fake dossier paid for by the Hillary Clinton campaign. The investigation cost $32 million dollars and found nothing.

We’ve also had four years violent rhetoric from Democrat party leaders like California Representative Maxine Waters who endorsed the harassment of Trump officials.

In June 2018, Maxine Waters said: “If you see anybody from that cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd, and you push back on them, and you tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere.”

There have been many other instances of violent rhetoric coming from Democrat politicians and operatives who couldn’t accept a 2016 Hillary Clinton loss. Many of these rhetorical attacks equated Trump supporters with Nazis. This resulted in numerous innocent people, like WWII veterans, women and children being assaulted or killed for wearing pro-Trump paraphernalia.

Mr. Gottheimer remained silent during these verbal attacks from his party, and the subsequent attacks on innocent citizens.

When it comes to violence from Democrat supporters, Gottheimer was once again, mute.

Try as I might, I can’t find one source that has Mr. Gottheimer condemning the June 2017 GOP baseball practice shooter James T. Hodgkinson, a Bernie Sanders supporter. Republican Representative Steve Scalise was shot and almost killed by Hodgkinson at the baseball field.

I also can’t find any source where Rep. Gottheimer condemned the seven months long rioting by Antifa and Black Lives Matter, which caused 30 deaths, at least $2 billion dollars in damage and hundreds of thousands of ruined lives and businesses.

In fact, these riots had the approval of the liberal media and Democrat politicians.

The Democrat party obviously has two sets of rules for rioting and inciting violence, one for rioters who support the Democrat party, and one for rioters who don’t. The Antifa and BLM riots primarily occurred in blue, Democrat-run cities. Most of these cities ordered a stand down of policing and had sympathetic leftist prosecutors that created a revolving door of catch and release of the rioters. The Biden administration and Kamala Harris even raised funds to bailout Antifa and BLM criminals.

The recent riot at the Capitol by fringe Trump supporters was wrong and was rightfully condemned by both sides. The Democrats however, have sought to paint all Trump supporters as rioters, when the truth is that 99.98 percent of the Trump supporters protested peacefully and then went home.

After the riot, Joe Biden referred to Senator Ted Cruz and Representative Josh Hawley as Nazis because they dared to question the irregularities in the recent election for President. In the past, Democrats have challenged certification numerous times, including in 2016.

Once again, the Democrats have two sets of rules that basically boil down to, it’s OK when Democrats do it.

Those fringe Trump supporters who planned to riot at the Capitol last week watched for four years as innocent Trump supporters were attacked and recently watched seven months of rioting, burning, looting, and killing. All of this violence was perpetrated by Democrat supporters and overwhelmingly without consequences.

Perhaps if Mr. Gottheimer wishes for the divisive fires in our country to be extinguished, he and his party should first put down the matches.

Tom Wilson

West Milford