FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2021

DELRAY BEACH FL – Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus President Stephen Gaskill issued the following statement in response to Congress certifying the 2020 election results after supporters of President Trump took over the U.S. Capitol.

“We’ve seen an historic 24 hours for our country: Congress certified Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the next President and Vice President of the United States. And just as momentously, Democrats won control of the U.S. Senate with confirmations of the elections in Georgia. The first Black man from the Deep South, Rev. Raphael Warnock, and the first Jewish man from the Deep South, Jon Ossoff, will ensure the implementation of the change the Biden-Harris agenda will bring.

“But it’s also a day that will be seen as one of America’s greatest disgraces. After deliberately spreading conspiracy theories and lies about the 2020 election, President Trump incited a mob of armed domestic terrorists who violently stormed the U.S. Capitol and occupied both chambers in an un-American display of insurrection.

“President Trump violated his oath of office, and it’s clear he can no longer discharge the powers and duties of the Presidency. The Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus calls on Trump’s Cabinet to perform their Constitutional duty, invoke the 25th Amendment, and remove him from office.

“In addition, we call on the U.S. Congress to expel Florida Senator Scott and Representatives Cammack, Diaz-Balart, Donalds, Dunn, Franklin, Gaetz, Giminez, Mast, Posey, Rutherford, Steube and Webster for their role in objecting to certification of the election results, which helped incite the tragic events at the Capitol. Public figures like Rudy Giuliani and Donald Trump Jr. who encouraged insurrection – and those who committed the act – must also be arrested and held accountable.

“The United States has lived with good leaders and bad leaders, but for the last four years we have endured the worst leaders in our history. Change is coming, but we must recognize the challenges that are still on the table — notably, those who trumpet their own views of the democracy envisioned in our Constitution, even though those views are untethered from reality.

“Elections have consequences. Our democracy has survived this test, but we now know how fragile our republic is. It’s time for healing, and this is our opportunity to return to truth, facts, and evidence in our policymaking. We must make the most of it.”

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