'Troubling questions': Madison Cawthorn called out by local paper over ties to Jan 6th protest

The editorial board of the highly influential News Observer has singled out Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) following revelations in a bombshell report in Rolling Stone linking him to the events at the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6th.

According to the report, organizers of the Jan 6th "Stop the Steal" rally that proceeded the attack on Congress as it set about certifying the 2020 the results of the presidential election were reportedly in contact with Cawthorn or his staff, as well as other GOP lawmakers.

According to the editorial, that raises "serious questions" about his involvement in the events of the day that requires investigation by the House select committee looking into the riot and Donald Trump's culpability.

Writing "that two organizers of the Jan. 6 protests have told congressional investigators that 'multiple members of Congress were intimately involved in planning both Trump's efforts to overturn his election loss and the Jan. 6 events that turned violent,'" the editors added, "Rolling Stone said the organizers, speaking anonymously, named seven Republican members of Congress who joined, either directly or through their staffers, in the effort to overturn the election. Republican North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn was among those named."

Noting that a spokesperson for Cawthorn has already attempted to dismiss the report, the editors suggest it deserves special attention and more questions need to be asked.

Writing "That Cawthorn was named is hardly a surprise," the editors pointed out that he still continues to question the election results and recently told a Republican gathering, "When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes your duty."

"Cawthorn's remarks are not the only embarrassment for North Carolina. The Rolling Stone report also suggests deep involvement in the Jan. 6 events by White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, a former Republican congressman who preceded Cawthorn in North Carolina's 11th District, the editorial continued before adding, "Anyone who truly cares about democracy knows it is threatened by the authoritarian instincts of Trump and his followers, and by Republicans who are too timid to stand against that threat. Elected officials like Cawthorn are not simply zealots or cranks. They are the start of what could become an anti-democratic wave that would have a white and wealthy minority preside over the nation against the popular will."

The editors concluded, "Now the committee must uncover who those bad actors are — and how many of them are from North Carolina."

You can read the complete editorial here.