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Salon
Salon
Politics
Abigail Goldberg-Zelizer

MAGA threats turn to fellow Republicans

Adam Kinzinger | Capitol Riot Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images

On Tuesday, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Il, posted a video on Twitter compiling some of the threatening phone calls that his office has been receiving from angry constituents. The calls reflect the frustration that Trump supporters feel towards Kinzinger, one of just two Republican congressmen serving on the Jan. 6 committee.

"Threats of violence over politics has increased heavily in the last few years. But the darkness has reached new lows. My new interns made this compilation of recent calls they've received while serving in my DC office," Kinzinger wrote.

The calls feature incredibly graphic language and threats of violence against Kinzinger, his mother, and his wife.

"I hope you naturally die as quickly as f****** possible," one caller yells.

Kinzinger notes that the video was put together by his school-age interns, who are the ones responsible for receiving such violent calls.

Most callers attack Kinzinger for his participation in the Jan 6. committee to investigate the role that former President Donald Trump played in the attack on the Capitol.

"You go against Trump y'all know y'all m************ are sitting up there lying. Like a damn dog," a caller said.

Along with Kinzinger, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo, the other Republican on the Jan. 6 committee, has faced outrage from the pro-Trump mob.

"We're going to get you and Liz Cheney," another caller warned.

Kinzinger, who was first elected to Congress in 2010, has been an opponent of Trump since the 2016 Republican National Convention. Last year, Kinzinger was among one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for "incitement of insurrection." In the months after, Kinzinger announced that he would not be seeking re-election.

Kinzinger's active role in the Jan. 6 hearings has made him a target of the far-right. Last month, he shared that amid constant threats of violence, he has been forced to increase his own security.

But Kinzinger sees these increased threats of violence as a sign that Republicans are scared.

After last week's testimony by Cassidy Hutchinson, a former White House aide, Kinzinger believes that Trump and his allies are starting to panic. "They're all scared," Kinzinger tweeted, "They should be."

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