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Jackson County Republicans censure congressmen who voted for Trump's impeachment

Posted at 5:39 PM, Mar 12, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-12 17:40:03-05

JACKSON, Mich — The Jackson County Republican Executive Committee along with Republican precinct delegates have passed resolution that supports former President Donald Trump and calls into question the legitimacy of the 2020 Presidential election nearly four months after the results were finalized.

"The Resolution echoes the frustration and disappointment in those who supported the weaponization of the impeachment process and lack of due process displayed," said Jackson County Republican Committee Chairman Matt Dame.

The resolution censures Michigan Congressmen Fred Upton and Peter Meijer after, both of whom voted to impeach Trump.

Which doesn't necessarily mean much, said Michigan State University Director of the Institute on Public Policy and Social Research Matt Grossmann.

"All it is is a piece of paper that states an opinion of the group but it certainly is reflective of a national trend going on in the Republican party," Grossmann said. "This is one of many of these kinds of resolutions that has been passed against legislators in the Republican party who have broken with Trump. The actual impact is pretty limited. It's basically a piece of paper that says 'Here's what we think.'"

The executive committee also came out in support of Congressman Tim Walberg for standing behind the former President.

“I appreciate the support of Jackson County Republicans and I am grateful to be entrusted as the voice of my constituents in Congress," said Walberg.

The results of the previous election heavily favored Trump in Jackson County where he received close to 59% of the votes.

Nationwide, Biden got more than 51 percent of the votes cast. Trump got less than 47 percent, a different of more 7 million votes.

But questions about the validity of the election still linger in the minds of local officials.

"There were those in the JCRC who thought the testimony of credible witnesses at both the Michigan State Senate Oversight Hearings and Michigan House Oversight Hearings were credible enough to be taken more seriously by the Secretary of State and Attorney General and that the witnesses claims be thoroughly investigated to ensure election integrity moving forward," Dame said, who noted concerns about ballot scanners connected to ethernet cables, unbalanced precincts and the number of Republican poll workers in Detroit. A

Those concerns are misguided, the state has said on its election fact-checking website.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said earlier this month that more than 250 audits had confirmed the accuracy and integrity of Michigan's election and that more than 1,300 municipal clerks, many of them Republicans, had participated in those audits.

"There are always, of course, some irregularities in a national election that takes place in lots of local jurisdictions but as Mitch McConnell said it was not particularly close compared to previous presidential elections and did not particularly stand out in terms of the kinds of questions that were raised about election law throughout the country," Grossmann said.

Grossmann points out Democrats had reservations about the 2016 election.

"Both parties want to change the rules that are likely to benefit themselves," he said.

Grossmann said he wouldn't attribute too much influence to the Jackson County Republican Party, but Trump is a different story.

"If he is going to continue to contest the election and going to continue to sort of make it a badge of being a Republican that you have to say the 2020 election was illegitimate, then that will have a big effect on Republican views, voting rules, and Republican views of government," he said. "So, I think the Jackson County effort is more of a symptom of this issue more than it is a cause of it."

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