LANSING, Mich., Feb. 12, 2021 — During former President Trump’s impeachment hearing today, defense attorneys played a montage of videos which included footage of a Facebook Live video posted last December by Michigan State Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson (D-Detroit). The video contained Johnson’s response to an overwhelming number of death threats she had received following a committee hearing questioning the validity of the recent presidential election. In response, Johnson issued the following statement:
“Once again, my comments are being taken out of context in a weak attempt to justify the riot and hostile takeover of our nation’s Capitol inspired by Trump. The people of Detroit didn’t elect me to speak in pre-packaged and polished statements that don’t really say anything. They elected me to stand up for them and tell it like it is – the good, the bad and the ugly. If you take the time to watch that entire video, not the version cut and edited by alt-right outlets with an agenda, it’s clear I was doing just that. However, we’ve already seen the entirety of what Trump is and what he stands for. We’ve seen that for four years, and it led to death threats, armed militias entering our state capitol and a deadly attack on our nation’s Capitol.”
# # #