It's no secret that legislators and supporters loyal to Donald Trump and his "MAGA" movement have been
threatening political violence for years. Since their insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in 2021 following his political loss, the calls for violence have only grown among both elected and civilian right-wing extremists.
Recently, an Arizona state representative took comments about political violence to another - and explicitly deadly - level. And it should terrify all of us.
Sign now to tell the Arizona State legislature: eject John Gillette from the state legislature now!In a comment on X, representative John Gillette
publicly endorsed the conviction and hanging of Pramila Jayapal, an elected Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Jayapal, a congresswoman who has represented Washington state for over 8 years, had posted a video entitled "The Resistance Lab," which describes how to peacefully organize against authoritarianism, including potentially protesting in the streets.
Afterwards, when reporters asked for clarification, Gillette stated that he'd changed his mind - that he'd prefer to subject the Congresswoman to a "firing squad" instead of hanging.Non-violent protesting is a constitutionally protected, First Amendment right for all Americans. Yet this man wants to convict Americans for doing it, and kill the elected official who gave them information on how to organize strategically and safely.
Not only did Gillette endorse the execution of a sitting member of Congress - he also urged the execution of "people like" her. Who exactly does this mean? Is he referring to anyone at all who advocates for protesting, or who opposes Trump's political agenda?
We cannot tolerate calls for political violence from elected officials. This is absolutely unacceptable. John Gillette is unfit to serve as an elected official and should be ejected from the Arizona State legislature. Sign the petition now if you agree!