Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) revealed his “fear” that former President Donald Trump is powerless and convicted for actions related to the Capitol insurrection.
In an interview with CNN where he reflected on his work with the House January 6 select committee and departure from Congress, Kinzinger expressed his concern that failure to hold Trump responsible will set a dangerous bar for future leaders.
“If he’s not guilty of a crime, then I frankly fear for the future of this country, because now every future president can say, ‘Hey, this is a bar.’ And the bar is doing everything they can to stay in power,” he told CNN’s Dana Bash.
Kinzinger noted that he is “not a lawyer, not a Justice Department person” and was speaking his personal opinion, but said Trump’s actions were problematic “from the perspective of the president, from the perspective of the oath of office.”
“When we got this, I looked, and I was like, well, if this isn’t a crime, I don’t know what is,” he said. “If the president can cause rebellion and be irresponsible, then really, there’s no limit to what the president can or can’t do.”
On December 22, the January 6 committee released its final report on Trump’s efforts to stay in power after losing the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden. The committee also recently released transcripts of interviews it conducted with people close to Trump, including Donald Trump Jr., his fiancée Kimberly Guilfoyle and former Trump adviser Stephen Miller.
The committee referred four criminal charges against Trump to the Justice Department on December 19, but in October, Kinzinger said “the torch has been passed” already to the DOJ and the American people.
“Because we’re saying, ‘This is what the deal is, now you have to stop this from, A, happening again, and really take control as a self-governing country,” he told ABC. “What country are you going to live in?” This is unacceptable the way it is being done. We can do better.’”
Kinzinger is one of four committee members who will not return to the 118th Congress, which convenes on Tuesday. Kinzinger announced in October 2021 that he would not seek re-election. Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) also announced in 2021 that she will not run again. Two other members lost their races ― Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) lost the primary, and Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) lost to a Republican opponent in the general election.