Josh Hawley’s star has faded significantly since January 6th. The Missouri Senator’s approval ratings among Republicans dropped 9-points since the siege on Capitol Hill. And since the election, it’s dropped 14-points overall.
While Hawley isn’t exactly changing course based on the backlash, Washington Post opinion writer Greg Sargent says “Hawley’s ludicrous clean-up act is in full swing.” Last week Hawley told CNN, “I was representing my constituents… I did exactly what I said I was going to do. And I gave voice to my constituents, and I have condemned mob violence in all its forms.”
Sargent adds:
When the reporter pointed out to Hawley that the insurrectionists thought they could change the results while citing objections to the electors from Hawley and other Republicans, Hawley dismissed the point.
“I was very clear from the beginning that I was never attempting to overturn the election,” Hawley said.
The Kansas City Star is out with an extensive report on how those who know Hawley have reacted to his behavior. It’s headlined, ‘Bamboozled.’ Hawley mentors stunned by conduct, but early warning signs were there.
Hawley’s mentors have disavowed him. Donors have demanded refunds. Colleagues have called for his resignation or expulsion. And those who helped guide his career are asking themselves if they missed something essential about their former mentee.
Hawley’s middle school principal told the publication “her admiration of the young Hawley has soured into bafflement, anger and even disgust for the leading role he played in sowing doubt about the election’s integrity.” She remarked:
“I just think with his moral upbringing, why would he propagate that lie is beyond me… It’s just his ambition, I think. You know, it’s just simply the ambition. He saw that as a way to get attention.”
David Kennedy, a Stanford professor who served as Hawley’s academic adviser told the paper this about Hawley’s behavior, “I am more than a little bamboozled by it, certainly distressed by it.”
Now Hawley is speaking out making it clear he isn’t going to change his tune. He penned a piece for the New York Post claiming:
We need to stand up for the basic principles that join all Americans together — the right to speak freely, to debate openly, and to address our differences graciously without fear of being silenced or punished for dissenting views.
I for one am not going to back down.
You weren’t muzzled. You spoke out and caused a bloody insurrection.
— Amy Siskind ?️? (@Amy_Siskind) January 25, 2021
