Illinois Republicans are targeting Adam Kinzinger — even though he's leaving office

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) announced that he wouldn't run for reelection in 2022 after years of being Donald Trump's punching bag. While Kinzinger is on his way out the door, however, Republican members from the southern part of his state are looking to give him a quick kick too.

The Chicago Tribune reported that GOP candidate for governor Darren Bailey demanded the Illinois Republican Party censure Kinzinger for his participation in the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on Congress and the attempt to overthrow the 2020 election. Bailey is supported by Trump though it's unclear if the demand came from the former president.

There are just five members of the Illinois Freedom Caucus, but they attacked the 12-year Republican lawmaker saying he has "offered up little but incendiary language, wild exaggerations and personal opinions as so-called evidence of his baseless claims."

Most Republican lawmakers say that they're not even watching the Jan. 6 committee hearings, so the attack on Kinzinger is a tell that they've clearly watched each of them.

The same group of Republicans also opposes mandates for vaccines and any mitigation efforts for the pandemic.

“These hearings are a sham without any due process, and a ban on any witnesses for the accused,” said Freedom Caucus member state Rep. Adam Niemerg, who nearly copied the same comments from Donald Trump. “We expect this from Democrats, but it is appalling to see Republicans like Adam Kinzinger to play such a prominent part in these proceedings. He should be censured by the Illinois Republican party for his actions.”

While Bailey isn't a Freedom Caucus member he is a member of the Trump train, despite the former president losing Illinois twice by 17 percent.

There's no impact of a "censure" as Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) learned earlier this year.

ALSO IN THE NEWS: Liz Cheney slams Tom Cotton's attack on J6 hearings: Try 'actually watching them'

Read the full report at the Chicago Tribune.