Former Rep. Luria's Opening Statement on Trump's Jan 6th Dereliction of Duty

Trump's Oath and Dereliction of Duty

• 🇺🇸 As a retired naval officer, Luria emphasizes her oath to defend the Constitution, contrasting it with Donald Trump's failure to uphold his oath on January 6th.
• 💔 Trump's dereliction of duty is highlighted by his failure to act to end the violence, his rewriting of history, and his pardons of rioters, which undercut the rule of law.

Trump's Inaction on January 6th

• ⏳ For over 3 hours, Trump disregarded pleas from staff and family to stop the violence, watching the events unfold on television instead of acting.
• 🗣️ When Trump finally spoke, he expressed solidarity with the instigators and doubled down on stolen election claims, telling rioters to "go home and go in peace."

Delay in National Guard Deployment

• 🚨 Trump bears responsibility for the extreme delay in the DC National Guard's arrival, which only came after the violence had largely subsided.
• 📞 Senior guard leaders testified that Trump could have expedited deployment with a single phone call, but he made no such call.

Politicization of the Military

• 🏛️ Trump has re-scripted government service norms to require personal loyalty over constitutional loyalty, alarming national security professionals.
• 🚫 He fired Secretary of Defense Mark Esper for insufficient personal loyalty and resisted using active-duty military for domestic political purposes.
• ⚖️ Trump has continued to politicize the armed forces, opening investigations, purging leadership, and threatening to recall a senator to active duty.

A Vision for the Military

• 🎖️ Luria finds Trump's vision for the military, which blurs lines between constitutional duty and political aims, to be deeply un-American.
• 🚩 Trump attacked the fundamental idea that the military serves the Constitution, not a man, party, or political agenda, a trend that has accelerated since January 6th.
• 🗳️ Upholding democratic values depends on leaders and citizens choosing to defend the Constitution, a fight Luria vows to never abandon.