If Rep. Maxine Waters were a Republican, there would’ve been massive backlash over the comments she made at a recent anti-police protest in Minneapolis. During the protest, Waters called for riots if former police officer Derek Chauvin was not found guilty for the murder of George Floyd and urged protesters to “stay on the streets” and “get more active.”
“We’re looking for a guilty verdict. And if we don’t we cannot go away…We’ve got to get more confrontational. We’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business,” Rep Waters said at the event.
Hours later, two Minnesota National Guard members suffered injuries from a drive-by shooting. While some Democrats have been actively moving away from the “defund the police movement,” others are concerned that the violence in Minneapolis is being linked back to her and Democrats in general. But Rep. Waters has no problem intimidating the jury by talking about staying on the streets and threatening acts of violence in relation to this specific case.
During the George Floyd murder trial, defense attorney Eric Nelson argued that the comments of a U.S representative were being used to deliver a specific outcome to the case and that the comment should result in a mistrial. He told the court that there is a high probability that jurors will see Rep. Waters’ comments.
Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill rejected the motion for a mistrial by saying a congresswoman’s opinion doesn’t really matter a whole lot but criticized Rep. Waters for “abhorrent” comments over the weekend. He adds that if politicians have something to say, then they should watch their words and speak in a way that is respectful and consistent with their oath to the Constitution, particularly the judicial branch.
“I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law. I’ll give you that Congresswoman Waters may have given you something on appeal that may result in this whole trial being overturned. I’m aware that Congresswoman Waters was talking specifically about this trial, and about the unacceptability of anything less than a murder conviction, and talk about being ‘confrontational,” Cahill said.
This isn’t the first time Rep. Waters has appeared to incite and justify violence against political opponents. Back in June 2018, Rep. Waters told a crowd of supporters that if they see any members of the Trump Administration in a restaurant, in a department store, or at a gasoline station, then you get out and “push back.” She told people to create a crowd and tell the cabinet members that they are not welcome anymore.
But GOP members are fighting back against the double standards of a political party that tried to impeach former president Donald Trump over telling supporters to “peacefully protest.” House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy shared that he will force a vote in the House to formally censure Waters by the House and remove her powerful position as chair of the Financial Services Committee
“This weekend in Minnesota, Maxine Waters broke the law by violating curfew and then incited violence. Increased unrest has already led to violence against law enforcement and her comments intentionally poured fuel on the fire. We’ve heard this type of violent rhetoric from Waters before, and the United States Congress must clearly and without reservation reprimand this behavior before more people get hurt,” McCarthy said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even shared that some Democrats have conceded privately about not being pleased with Rep. Waters. Members said they have felt concerned about the “optics” of potential violence being linked back to her and Democrats generally, and that she should apologize. Pelosi used the term “optics” because it’s not about what you say, but how it all looks. That’s all you need to know about Democrats. All they care about is power.