GOP Lawmaker Who Opposed Trump Disowned by 11 of His Own Family Members
Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois is facing a scathing backlash from 11 members of his own family over his vitriolic opposition to former President Donald Trump.
In a withering Jan. 8 letter, Kinzinger’s cousin, Karen Otto, slammed him for demanding Trump’s removal shortly after his supporters marched on Capitol Hill during a Jan. 6 voter fraud protest.
The congressman declared in a Jan. 7 video that the president had become “unmoored” from reality and must be ousted via the 25th Amendment.
It’s with a heavy heart I am calling for the sake of our Democracy that the 25th Amendment be invoked. My statement: pic.twitter.com/yVyQrYcjuD
— Adam Kinzinger (@RepKinzinger) January 7, 2021
“Oh my, what a disappointment you are to us and to God!” Otto’s letter read. “We were once so proud of your accomplishments! Instead, you go against your Christian principles and join the ‘devil’s army’ (Democrats and the fake news media).”
The scorching two-page missive continued: “You won’t convince us otherwise with your horrible, rude accusations of President Trump! (To embrace a party that believes in abortion and socialism is the ultimate sin.)”
The letter, which was signed by 10 other Kinzinger relatives, accused the six-term congressman of disgracing his entire family.
“It is now most embarrassing to us that we are related to you,” the letter read. “You have embarrassed the Kinzinger family name. … We are thoroughly disgusted with you!! And, oh by the way, we are calling for your removal from office.
“President Trump has done more for the American people in four years, than you, the [RINOs] and the Democrats have done in years!!”
Letter to Kinzinger by The Western Journal on Scribd
In her emotional letter, Otto said many more family members feel the same way she does, but they were afraid to sign their names.
On Monday, Otto told The New York Times that she had sent copies of the letter to Republicans across Illinois and to the state’s congressional delegation.
Kinzinger’s relatives aren’t the only ones who are furious at him for his repeated attacks on Trump, which started in 2016 and escalated throughout the former president’s tenure.
His eagerness to jump in front of the cameras and deride Trump on demand made Kinzinger a “useful idiot” for the left and a CNN darling.
Ironically, he supported many of Trump’s policies but often trashed him because of his brash personality.
On Feb. 2, Kinzinger was censured by county Republicans in his home district after voting to impeach Trump in the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives.
At the time, the LaSalle County Republican Central Committee rebuked the congressman for voting “contrary to the values” of the party and failing to represent his constituents.
Larry Smith, the county’s GOP chairman, issued a statement noting that 88 percent of its precinct committeemen had voted to reprimand Kinzinger.
“The LaSalle County Republicans have received hundreds upon hundreds of emails, text messages, and phone calls from our county and beyond expressing their frustration and a lot more with Congressman Kinzinger’s actions and statements the past few months,” Smith said.
He said many constituents had threatened to cut off their support for the Republican Party if “Kinzinger’s behavior isn’t addressed.”
[firefly_poll]
The two issues cited in the formal censure included Kinzinger’s alleged failure to meet with the Republican Central Committee in more than six years and his vote to impeach Trump.
Predictably, left-wing Twitter trolls have cynically exploited Kinzinger’s family feud to mock Republicans. However, it bears noting that numerous Democrats have disowned or quarreled with their Trump-supporting family members over the past four years.
In November 2020, lifelong Democrat Mayra Gomez said her son cut her out of his life after she told him that she was planning to vote for Trump.
“He specifically told me, ‘You are no longer my mother, because you are voting for Trump,’” Gomez, 41, told Reuters. “There are people not talking to me anymore, and I’m not sure that will change.”
Similarly, Gayle McCormick, 77, told Reuters that she had separated from her 81-year-old husband after he voted for Trump in 2016.
Sarah Guth, 39, said she stopped talking to several longtime friends because they supported Trump.
“We had such fundamental disagreements about such basic stuff,” Guth told Reuters. “It showed both sides that we really don’t have anything in common. I don’t believe that will change in the post-Trump era.”
Many simpletons blame Trump for “causing” these interpersonal rifts when, in reality, he merely spotlighted the latent fissures lurking beneath the surface.
It’s sad when family members fight over politics because family should stick together no matter what.
However, Trump’s political ascent forced the media and society to confront controversial issues they swept under the rug for decades because it’s “impolite” to scrutinize the abysmal state of race relations, the dangers of illegal immigration, the alarming fallout of leftist media brainwashing and the sinister indoctrination of children in schools.
SCOOP: The principal of East Side Community School in New York sent white parents this “tool for action,” which tells them they must become “white traitors” and then advocate for full “white abolition.”
This is the new language of public education. pic.twitter.com/0XA3xUpcuT
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) February 15, 2021
Ideally, people should not cut their family or friends out of their lives simply because they have differing viewpoints.
However, the past four years have also shown that Trump Derangement Syndrome is real and it is toxic. People don’t need extra negativity in their lives, especially if it comes from someone who’s supposed to be in their corner.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
