Who The %&@* Is Lauren Boebert?
If you are like the vast majority of Americans, you had no idea who Lauren Boebert was until the events at the Capitol on January 6th.
She, like many of the Republican members of the House of Representatives, objected to the certification of election results for various states that former president Donald Trump lost in his reelection bid. This while insurrectionists began their march on the Capitol building after having been whipped into a murderous frenzy by the lame duck president at a rally nearby.
“Madam Speaker, I have constituents outside this building right now. I promised my voters to be their voice.”
This is what she chose to say during her objection to the Arizona election results as Trump supporters, white supremacists, QAnon conspiracy theorists, and various others clashed with Capitol Police outside that very building, eventually breaking in and sending Boebert and her colleagues running for safety.
As she sheltered in place, despite repeatedly being told not to do so, she tweeted out the movements of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, one of the main targets of the mob’s wrath.
In the ongoing fallout of those events on the 6th, and reports of her possible involvement in the lead up to it, there has been a growing call for her resignation or outright expulsion from the House.
So, who is Lauren Boebert besides a freshman member of the House who has been thrust into the national discussion because of her antics?
Representing Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, Boebert is an avid gun-right proponent. She and her husband operate a few restaurants, specifically Shooters Grille, where servers are heavily encouraged to open carry firearms.
She refused to close her restaurants when the state ordered it in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. She remained at odds with the state on the issue until restaurants were allowed to reopen at 50% capacity.
A QAnon conspiracy believer, Boebert upset incumbent Republican Scott Tipton, described as rank-and-file Republican, in a surprising primary win with nearly 55% of the vote. Boebert ran a far-right campaign, actively criticizing progressive members of the legislature like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Boebert then took on Democratic challenger Diane Mitsch Bush in the general election; Bush lost to Tipton in the 2018 midterm election for the same seat. Boebert received a little over 51% of the vote, in line with the 52% support of Trump in the district, winning the seat.
With the election win in hand, Boebert was only more emboldened in her views. She publicly stated many times that she would carry firearms into the Capitol, in contradiction of a law that strictly forbids it. She also refused to have her bag searched when she set off recently installed metal detectors at the Capitol entrance.
Boebert also has been active on social media in spreading her unfounded claims that the 2020 elections were fraudulent in various states besides her own. She tweeted on November 29, 2020, “There is no way that anyone can call the 2020 presidential election fair. We have to make this right.”
According to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, there have been 7 convictions for some form of voting fraud in Colorado since 2016, more than the state of Georgia and approximately the same as Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin in the same time frame, the states objectors overwhelmingly point to when peddling their baseless allegations of rampant fraud.
Boebert has been criticized for her rhetoric leaving up to the events of January 6th, the day the the rather mundane task of counting Electoral College votes was set to take place, if not for the ridiculous display by Trump sycophants on the floor of the House.
Tweets like, “Save the Date: January 6, 2021.” and “Ted Cruz is an American hero and patriot! On January 6, we’re both going to be fighting for freedom!” in the month leading up to the day made Boebert’s intentions to object to fair election results clear.
It’s other tweets like, “Remember these next 48 hours. These are some of the most important days in American history.” on January 5th and “Today is 1776” on the morning of the 6th that have taken on rather insidious tones in the aftermath of what can only be described as a failed coup attempt.
There have also been claims from Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee that he and Rep. John Yarmuth of Kentucky witnessed Boebert leading a large group of people on a tour of the Capitol Building in the days leading up to the 6th. Public Capitol tours have been suspended in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, although members of Congress have been able to lead their own tours.
Boebert claims that only her family was with her at the time, although other Congressional members have previously mentioned an unidentified House member, believed to be Boebert, leading a rather large group of people on a tour of the Capitol grounds.
In response to these claims and her perceived role in the Capitol riots, Boebert’s communications director, Ben Goldey, resigned after less than two weeks on the job.
Goldey, who previously served as press secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior in the Trump administration, said in his resignation letter, “The past week has been especially difficult in D.C. and across our Country. Scenes from the events of January 6th have replayed in my mind in a way that I had not anticipated. The destruction that took place, which the President of the United States bears responsibility for, has left me dismayed, discouraged, and downright angry. The Congresswoman deserves a team that is aligned with her message and goals. I will not be that person.”
While all of this seems like pure lunacy to have taken place in American politics, the sad truth of the fact is that Boebert is representative of a not-so-insignificant portion of the population that grew quickly during Donald Trump’s tenure in office. Other members of the House and Senate share the same views as Boebert and have been undeterred in spreading their conspiracy theory rhetoric and nefarious claims of fraud.
Challengers to Boebert have already begun to let their intentions be known, such as Marina Zimmerman who announced on January 25th via Twitter that she would be looking to unseat the freshman Congresswoman.
“I’m going to challenge Lauren Boebert (if she makes it to 2022) for the Colorado 3rd District,” Zimmerman tweeted out. She continued, “I Graduated with honors with a degree in Paralegal Studies, Graduated Fort Lewis College, 2008 Political Science / with pre-law minor. Interned for US Rep John Salazar.”
John Salazar represented Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District for three terms before being unseated by Scott Tipton.
State Senator Kerry Donovan and State Representative Dylan Roberts have also expressed interest in challenging Boebert for the House seat, both having declined to challenge the incumbent Tipton, who they believed would be difficult to unseat.
