Senator Ron Johnson Engages In “Ridiculous Revisionist History,” Denies There Was An Armed Insurrection At The Capitol

Johnson’s False Claim That Deadly Mob Attack On January 6th “Didn’t Seem Like An Armed Insurrection” Receives “Pants On Fire” Rating For Downplaying Attack On U.S. Capitol

Senator Ron Johnson is facing well-deserved scrutiny after claiming yesterday that the January 6th assault on the U.S. Capitol “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” Johnson made the wildly inaccurate and disqualifying comments in a conservative talk radio interview where he denied reality and questioned whether or not the violent mob attack that left multiple people dead, including a U.S. Capitol Police officer, qualified as an armed insurrection.

Johnson received swift condemnation for his dangerous remarks. Nonpartisan fact-checker PolitiFact rated his claim “Pants on Fire” for being “ridiculous revisionist history,” and numerous local and national news outlets refuted Johnson, noting that “in court filings, law enforcement officials said they found some insurrectionists with guns and bombs either on their person, left outside or in their vehicles.” The facts are clear and not up for debate: we “can identify accounts of numerous weapons found in and around the Capitol, brought there in some cases by people who saw themselves as soldiers in a war… It was an armed insurrection.”

Johnson is already in jeopardy for his excessive “fealty to Trump” after consistently embracing the toxic former president and “using his former role as a committee chairman to air unproven and potentially harmful claims about COVID-19 and the presidential election.” Local Republican allies view his baseless claims as a major liability with suburban voters, and one local GOP recently chair admitted that Johnson “is at risk of losing moderate voters critical to winning.” New polling released today found that Johnson starts the 2022 cycle as “the most unpopular Republican among the broader electorate who is up for re-election next year.”

Read more on Senator Johnson’s “Pants on Fire” claim:

PolitiFact: Yes, Jan. 6 Capitol assault was an “armed insurrection”

• Johnson said the Jan. 6 Capitol riot “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” That’s ridiculous revisionist history.

• Overwhelmed police arrested and had direct contact with only a fraction of the mob that day, but we still can identify accounts of numerous weapons found in and around the Capitol, brought there in some cases by people who saw themselves as soldiers in a war. And many other rioters used whatever hard objects they could find to attack police and force their way into the Capitol.

• A majority of senators, through the impeachment vote, put the blame on Trump for stirring up the riot… But the “what” question shouldn’t be debated. It was an armed insurrection.

• We rate this claim Pants on Fire.

Associated Press: Wisconsin GOP senator downplays attack on U.S. Capitol

• Wisconsin’s Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson downplayed the storming of the U.S. Capitol last month, saying on conservative talk radio Monday that it “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection to me.”

• Law enforcement officials have said in court filings that guns, bombs and other weapons were found on people who stormed the Capitol, in their vehicles and elsewhere. The insurrectionists also used flag poles, stolen police shields, crutches, fire extinguishers, sticks and other objects to attack police officers and force entry into the Capitol.

Wisconsin State Journal: Ron Johnson: ‘This didn’t seem like an armed insurrection to me’

• Along with supporting Trump, Johnson during his time in the Senate has increasingly found himself in the role of a contrarian, using his former role as a committee chairman to air unproven and potentially harmful claims about COVID-19 and the presidential election.

• Either way, Johnson said that even after the impeachment trial footage gave him some additional clarity, he questioned whether the events on Jan. 6 truly represented an armed insurrection.

• In court filings, law enforcement officials said they found some insurrectionists with guns and bombs either on their person, left outside or in their vehicles.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Ron Johnson on Jan. 6 Capitol attack: ‘This didn’t seem like an armed insurrection to me’

• Wisconsin’s senior senator is questioning whether an armed insurrection even occurred. 

• U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson toured the state’s airwaves on Monday making the claim, despite video footage and photos of the attack showing participants erecting gallows, deploying pepper spray strong enough to repel bears, carrying zip ties, hurling a fire extinguisher, using baseball bats to smash windows, and throwing flags like spears at police officers. 

Washington Post: Sen. Ron Johnson plays down Capitol riots: ‘This didn’t seem like an armed insurrection to me’

The Daily Beast: Sen. Ron Johnson Tries to Downplay Capitol Riot: It Was Just a Bunch of Idiots

Forbes: Sen. Ron Johnson On Capitol Riot: ‘This Didn’t Seem Like An Armed Insurrection To Me’

Newsweek: Ron Johnson Bashes McConnell’s Rebuke of Trump, Says Riot ‘Didn’t Seem Like Armed Insurrection’

The Hill: Ron Johnson says Capitol attack ‘didn’t seem like an armed insurrection’

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski: “Incredibly stupid”

MSNBC’s Brian Williams: “Unbelievable explanation from Ron Johnson, which we’ve had translated from the original Russian, of course.”

Cook Political Report’s Jessica Taylor: “Just a reminder that Ron Johnson is the only Republican senator up for re-election next year in a a state Biden won #WISen”

Washington Post’s Dan Zak: “The gaslighting intensifies. Sen. Ron Johnson is all over Wisconsin radio questioning whether an armed insurrection even occurred.”

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