GOP lawmaker on Capitol protesters: ‘I will not be deterred’ by ‘mob demand’

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) addressed pro-Trump protesters swarming the Capitol grounds during the certification of the Electoral College results Wednesday, saying he would “not be deterred” from affirming President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.

“To those storming the Capitol – I am on the House floor and I will not be deterred from upholding my oath, under God, to the Constitution by mob demand,” Roy tweeted Wednesday.

To those storming the Capitol – I am on the House floor and I will not be deterred from upholding my oath, under God, to the Constitution by mob demand. #StandUpForAmerica

— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) January 6, 2021

Although more than 100 House Republicans have said they will raise objections to Biden’s victory, Roy is one of a handful who joined Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) in a letter last week saying they would not participate.

“Though doing so may frustrate our immediate political objectives, we have sworn an oath to promote the Constitution above our policy goals,” the signers of the letter wrote. “We must count the electoral votes submitted by the states.”

At least 13 Republican senators have also said they will object to the election results, forcing hours of debate and a formal vote. The objections will not prevent Biden from taking office Jan. 20 and numerous Republican senators, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), have said they will not join the challenge.

As Roy sent the tweet, massive crowds of protesters clashed with Capitol Police and attempted to enter the Capitol as lawmakers voted. Two federal buildings in the area were evacuated by police Wednesday afternoon.

Roy previously made headlines earlier this week when he challenged the seating of new members of Congress from six states whose electoral results his fellow Republicans have disputed. Roy cited unsubstantiated conspiracy theories about widespread voter fraud providing Biden’s margin of victory in the states and noted that the members in question appeared on the same ballot.

The claims, he said, “raise significant doubts about the elections of at least some of the members of the United States House of Representatives that, if not formally addressed, could cast a dark cloud of suspicion over the validity of this body for the duration of the 117th Congress.”