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Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) has long used his disability as an inspiring story about overcoming adversity, but others who face similar challenges say his triumphant claims have become something of a running joke among some others who use wheelchairs.
The newly elected North Carolina Republican was paralyzed from the waist down following a 2014 car crash, when he was 18 years old, and has falsely boasted about his business success, acceptance into the Naval Academy and training for the Paralympic Games, reported The Nation.
<p>"It's like a kid saying they want to play in the NBA when they're on their fourth-grade basketball team," said Paralympian athlete Amanda McGrory, who has earned seven medals in track and field.</p><p>The 25-year-old Cawthorn told a Christian podcast that he "had an opportunity" for track and field events in the Paralympics, but The Nation's reporting found no evidence of such an opportunity or any meaningful steps he'd taken to get there.</p><p>"You have to be involved in a team, usually your college or a local club," McGrory said, "and then from there, you establish times at qualifying races, and then from there you get scouted." </p><p>Cawthorn attended Patrick Henry College, a tiny Christian college in Virginia that doesn't offer a disabled sports program, and other wheelchair athletes don't recall ever seeing him at events.</p><p>"The community itself is small," said Robert Kozarek, a former elite wheelchair marathoner who never qualified for the Paralympic Games himself. "There's probably 50 [elite wheelchair racers] in the entire country, and we see each other four, five, six times a year, at least."</p><p>Cawthorn <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt1C5wxA3WI/" target="_blank">boasts</a> about training for the Paralympics on social media, but other athletes aiming for the same goals say the lawmaker's claims about his intentions to break the world record for the 100-meter dash are ridiculous.</p><p>"Who is this guy?" McGrory recalls thinking when she saw Cawthorn's boast. "Why does he think he's going to break world records? This is really weird. I don't think he has any idea what he's talking about."</p><p>Brian Siemann, a two-time Team USA track and field athlete in the Paralympic Games, sheepishly admitted that Cawthorn's Instagram account had been a running joke among other elite wheelchair athletes.</p><p>"[My teammates and I] would share whatever posts [Cawthorn] put up and be like, 'Look at what batsh*t thing he said about the Paralympics this week," Siemann said. "The claims he was making were just so absurd, you have to find some humor in it."</p><p>Cawthorn has also claimed that he'd been accepted to the Naval Academy after then-U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) nominated him, but he had already been rejected before his life-altering injury, and his real-estate investment firm, SPQR Holdings LLC, has reported no income on its tax documents and listed only the lawmaker as an employee.</p><p>The lawmaker's Instagram account kicked up one of the largest controversies in his fledgling career, after he celebrated a "bucket list" visit to Adolf Hitler's "Eagle's Nest" retreat, although he denounced the Nazi "Fuhrer" as "supreme evil."</p><p>A guest columnist for his hometown Asheville <em>Citizen Times</em> called on the youngest lawmaker elected to Congress since 1797 to step down after helping to incite a violent insurrection Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol, three days after he was sworn in, aimed at overturning Donald Trump's election loss.</p><p>"It's time for Congressman Cawthorn to resign," <a href="https://www.citizen-times.com/story/opinion/2021/01/11/madison-cawthorn-twitter-calls-to-resign-after-us-capitol-riot/6620584002/?itm_medium=recirc&itm_source=taboola&itm_campaign=internal&itm_content=RightRailArticleThumbnails-Redesign" target="_blank">wrote contributor Jasmine Beach-Ferrara</a>. "If he does not resign, he should be removed from office because he has violated his oath of office and specifically section 3 of the 14th Amendment."</p>
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Now that former President Donald Trump is gone and President Joe Biden has taken office, the real work begins. However, in the midst of moving forward, the Biden administration has quite a bit to clean up. The cover of Time magazine's latest issue offers a depiction of the chaos Trump leaves behind and now that cover image is going viral.
On Thursday, Jan. 22, Tim O'Brien tweeted a photo of the cover, titled "Day One," as he explained the piece saying, "For the past several days, after pondering where we are as a nation, what just happened in Washington, and what Joe Biden faces as he takes the office of President, I was working on a piece that is now on the cover of the new issue of Time Magazine."
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<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="47d2e80c89ff6407d12e16b188fd8c83" id="c08be"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1352254807474630660"><div style="margin:1em 0">For the past several days, after pondering where we are as a nation, what just happened in Washington, and what Joe… https://t.co/wK1V7BQPqc</div> — Tim O'Brien (@Tim O'Brien)<a href="https://twitter.com/TonkaOBrien/statuses/1352254807474630660">1611237644.0</a></blockquote></div>
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O'Brien's latest illustration comes just months after his previous visual depiction of Trump's one-term presidential travesty. Back in August, he released an image of Trump drowning in a COVID river while fighting to get back to the White House, seen in the distance.
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<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="143b016d3c5c54deb7d7793029ee5717" id="0cdc0"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1291329116176822272"><div style="margin:1em 0">TIME’s new cover: How COVID-19 changed everything about the 2020 election https://t.co/WcGbCk7j7t https://t.co/Bwq5PyKBzR</div> — TIME (@TIME)<a href="https://twitter.com/TIME/statuses/1291329116176822272">1596711827.0</a></blockquote></div>
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At the beginning of 2020 amid Trump's first impeachment trial, Time magazine featured a storm simulation designed by O'Brien that showed the former president sitting in the Oval Office at the resolute desk amid a thunderstorm. Despite the obvious storm, the caption befittingly read, "Nothing to see here."
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The latest cover comes as Trump prepares for his second impeachment trial. On Wednesday, Jan. 13, the House voted to impeach the disgraced former president again for allegedly inciting an insurrection on Jan. 6.
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The deadly riots occurred after Trump held a "Save America" rally and encouraged an angry mob of his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers were working to certify the Electoral College vote to affirm President Joe Biden's election win. The incident left five people dead, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick.
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Here are the names of more than 20 GOP lawmakers who attended Trump's rally that led to the Capitol riots
January 22, 2021
At first glance, it looked as if those who attended former President Donald Trump's "Save America" rally-turned-Capitol riot were just part of the American public. But, after further investigation, it has been confirmed that more than 20 of the rallygoers were actually Republican state and local lawmakers from across the United States. Now, their names are being made public.
According to HuffPost, "13 members of state Houses or Assemblies; three state senators; a county commissioner; a city council member; a GOP congressional district chair; a district director; and a co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party" were among those in the large crowd of Trump supporters.The publication reports that the group also included "a QAnon conspiracy theorist; a self-described member of a fascist militia; and a man who once declared that 'the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat,'" many of whom have been arrested for their participation in the deadly U.S. Capitol riot.
<p>From live streams to footage and videos posted online, investigators have managed to connect the dots. Here is the list of lawmakers:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Derrick Evans, a newly-elected Republican lawmaker in the West Virginia House of Delegates<strong>:</strong> Evans made headlines after live-streaming himself storming the Capitol. "We're in! We're in! We're in! We're in! Derrick Evans is in the Capitol!" According to the U.S. Justice Department, Evans was arrested and charged with "knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority," and "one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol Grounds." As a result of his actions, Evans submitted his resignation.</li><li>Couy Griffin, a Republican County Commissioner for Otero County, New Mexico, and founder of the group, Cowboys for Trump: Griffin was arrested and charged with "one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful entry" after posting footage from the U.S. Capitol riots.</li><li> Doug Mastriano, Republican State Senator in Pennsylvania: Mastriano's election campaign reportedly spent thousands of dollars to fund transportation for rallygoers to travel to Washington, D.C.</li><li> Mike Azinger, Republican State Senator in West Virginia: Azinger spoke out on a radio show and admitted that he had attended the rally but claimed he did not storm the U.S. Capitol. During the radio interview, he also claimed the rally was "so awe-inspiring and patriotic and peaceful that it would almost bring you to tears." He added, "These Marxists and leftists are trying to make it look like it was something we should be put in jail for."</li><li> Jessica Martinez, City Council Member in Whittier, Calif.: Martinez posted footage of herself at the "Save America" rally</li><li> Sandy and Melvin Adams: Sandy Adams serves as district director for Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.). Her husband, Melvin, serves as chair of Virginia's 5th District GOP Committee.</li><li> Dave LaRock, Republican Virginia Delegate: As an active participant in the Republican effort to overturn the results of the presidential election, LaRock did attend the rally but insisted that he condemns the violence that ensued "in the strongest possible terms." LaRock has also come under fire for making racially insensitive remarks.</li><li> Ron Hanks, Newly-elected State Rep. in Colorado: According to the publication, Hanks marched to the Capitol with rallygoers, but claims he did not enter the Capitol. The following day, Hanks wrote an outlandish letter with baseless claims about the riots as he insisted that the violence was "likely committed by people who 'intended to blend into the group, then create mayhem and blame it on Trump supporters,'" the publication reports. However, there is no evidence to support his claims.</li><li> Amanda Chase, Republican State Rep. in Virginia: As a self-christened "Trump in heels," Chase has faced heightened backlash for her attendance at the rally. The Virginia state Senate has voted 37 to 1 to strip Chase of her single committee assignment.</li><li> Mark Finchem, Republican State Rep. in Arizona: Finchem tweeted a photo of himself among the angry pro-Trump mob as they stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. While he claims to have left the Capitol before the mob breached it, more than 40 Arizona state representatives and senators have submitted a letter calling for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Department of Justice to open an investigation into Finchem's attendance at the Capitol.</li><li> Terri Lynn Weaver, Republican State Rep. in Tennessee: Weaver tweeted a photo of herself at the rally, which she described as an "epic and historic day." Despite the disturbing and deadly series of events that unfolded, Weaver claimed it was "just a whole heck of a lot of patriots here," adding, "We never experienced any violence."</li><li> Justin Hill, Republican State Rep. in Missouri: Hill is said to have skipped out on his own swearing-in ceremony to attend the "Save America" rally in support of former President Trump. However, he claims he did not enter the Capitol building and was not close enough to witness the deadly unrest that erupted.</li><li> Matt and Meshawn Maddock: Maddock, who serves as a Republican State Rep. in Michigan, and his wife, Meshawn Maddock, who was recently named co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party, attended the rally in support of Trump's attempted coup.</li><li> Dan Cox, Maryland Delegate: Cox shared a tweet insisting that "Pence is a traitor." He also chartered buses to transport Trump supporters to Washington, D.C., for the rally.</li><li> Annie Black, Newly elected Assemblywoman for the state of Nevada: While Black insists she did not storm the Capitol, she did admit that she observed the unrest from a distance.</li><li> Vernon Jones, Outgoing Democratic State Rep. in Georgia: Over the summer, Jones faced backlash after expressing support for Trump. While at the rally, Jones declared that he would be joining the Republican Party.</li><li> Chris Miller, State Rep. in Illinois: Miller shared footage of himself on social media while he was near the Capitol amid the "Save America" rally. He also warned his followers that ""we're in a great cultural war" with "dangerous Democrat terrorists."</li><li> David Eastman, State Rep. in Alaska: Eastman flew all the way from Alaska to Washington, D.C., to show his support for Trump's coup in an effort to overturn the presidential election.</li><li> Justin Price, State Rep. for Rhode Island: Price took to Twitter with a tweet admitting that he had attended the rally.</li></ul><p>While many of the rallygoers have not been arrested for simply attending the demonstration, the HuffPost argues that "the prevalence of Republican legislators and party functionaries at the demonstration underscores the party's rank complicity in fomenting a historic insurrection."</p>
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