Sedition Caucus

In American politics, "Sedition Caucus", "Treason Caucus", ^{[1] [2]} or "Seditious Caucus" ^[3] is a pejorative term for the Republican members of the 117th United States Congress who voted against the certification of Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election. The votes, triggered by representatives objecting to the electoral results from Arizona and Pennsylvania, occurred hours after rioters supporting incumbent president Donald Trump stormed the Capitol building to disrupt the vote. The term, referring to a Congressional caucus, does not refer to a formal group. Rather, it implies that the members of Congress who voted to object are in favor of or guilty of sedition, and had a direct or indirect role in the Capitol storming.^{[ citation needed ]} It originated with the media, and has been used by political opponents of the Republicans, but also by scholars.

While the term was originally used to describe members of Congress who voted against the certification of the electoral vote in the 2020 presidential election, its use has since become somewhat broader (but still related to the aftermath of the 2021 Capitol attack). For example, it was used to describe the senators who voted "not guilty" in the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump.

Origins and use

Historical context

Before the Electoral College certification vote, Donald Trump had attempted to overturn the results of the election for two months, promoting the Stop the Steal conspiracy theory that he had won, and filing dozens of lawsuits at the state level that were ruled against or dismissed. On December 2, 2020, Politico reported that Representative Mo Brooks of Alabama was planning to object to the counting of the electoral votes from several states won by Biden. ^[4] On December 30, 2020, Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri became the first senator to announce he would object to the vote certification, meaning the objection would need to be considered by Congress. ^[5]

Several Republican members of Congress who previously stated that they would object, including Senator Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, who had announced her intention to object at a campaign rally with Trump, chose not to do so following the Capitol riot. ^[6]

In April, Representative Liz Cheney, a Republican who did not vote to object to Biden's win, said she was considering a presidential run. She also indicated a belief that such objecting should be seen as "disqualifying" other presumptive Republican nominees, "particularly the senators who led the unconstitutional charge". ^[7]

Reactions to the objections

For broader coverage of the reactions to the planned objections, see 2021 United States Electoral College vote count § Reactions.

Media and emergence of the term

Even before the Capitol riot, some political commentators began using the term "Sedition Caucus". One of the earliest known uses of the term is from an Orlando Sentinel editorial on December 31, which noted that "about a dozen senators declared they're joining what's disparagingly being called the Sedition Caucus to overturn the election, despite Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's warnings against such a move." ^[8] Another early use of the term is by CNN host Jake Tapper on January 3, who said "Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska slammed Hawley and others of the Sedition Caucus saying, 'adults don't point a loaded gun at the legitimate government.'" ^{[9] [10]} The next day, The Atlantic published a column by Tom Nichols where he used the term, referencing Tapper. ^[11] In a January 5 column entitled "A really bad day for the 'Sedition Caucus'", political columnist Jennifer Rubin used the term to refer to the group of senators, calling them "the 'Sedition Caucus' — or the 'Dirty Dozen', if you prefer." ^{[a] [12]}

Use of the term is highly critical. Conservative columnist Max Boot compared Sedition Caucus members to Senator Joseph McCarthy and he argued that they should similarly "see their careers crash and burn". ^[14] Rubin argued that the senators should be expelled from the Senate or removed from the Republican caucus and Senators Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, and John Kennedy should be disbarred, and that members of the House should be primaried or face third party opponents. ^[13] Some members of the Sedition Caucus have faced calls for their resignation. ^[15]

Political opponents

In February, a Democratic super PAC called the Sedition Caucus PAC was formed to pursue negative campaigning against House Republicans in swing districts. ^[16]

In June 2021, Democratic U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly used the term, saying he thought McCarthy "would probably appoint people from the Sedition Caucus" to a proposed January 6 commission. ^[17]

Scholars

Scholars have also used the term when analyzing the objections of these Republicans as a norm-breaking political phenomenon. Political scientist Sarah Binder noted that the majority of Sedition Caucus members come from very red districts, while Republicans in swing districts mostly voted against the objection. ^[18] Binder also noted a divide between Senate Republican leadership, which overwhelmingly voted against the objection, and House Republican leadership, which overwhelmingly voted in favor of it, arguing that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy "led the Sedition Caucus" and attracted Republican votes to object. ^[18]

Political scientist Hans Noel said he believed the Sedition Caucus and their "progenitors" come from a common strain of racism, comparing their beliefs to Barack Obama citizenship conspiracy theories, Shelby County v. Holder , poll taxes, literacy tests, and white primaries. ^[19] Michael Latner, a political scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists, argued that the Sedition Caucus showed the need for legislation aimed at curbing political power, such as the For the People Act and a renewal of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as well as additional political parties and different voting systems. ^[20]

Effect on political donations

Further information: List of companies that halted U.S. political contributions in January 2021

The public outcry reduced some donors' willingness to fund Republican candidates associated with the Sedition Caucus.

On January 11, several major corporations pulled political funding for candidates who objected to Biden's victory. ^[21]

By June, however, many of these corporations had resumed donations, according to a report by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). The most generous of these was Toyota, which gave more than double that of the second-highest donor, Cubic Corporation. ^{[22] [23] [24]}

On January 21, The Lincoln Project, a conservative anti-Trump political action committee, announced it would run ads against Sedition Caucus members. ^[25]

On January 21, the progressive advocacy group Public Citizen reported that Big Tech companies and employees had given nearly $2 million (~$2.49 million in 2023) to Sedition Caucus members since 2016. ^{[26] [27]} Six days later, Public Citizen reported that fossil fuel companies and executives had donated $8.8 million to Sedition Caucus members. ^[28]

In July 2021, Toyota announced it would no longer donate to members of Congress who voted against certifying the 2020 election. ^[29] Toyota again resumed donations in April 2022. ^[30]

Other uses

Following the events at the U.S. Capitol, the editorial board of The Capital Times , a newspaper in Madison, Wisconsin, argued that the Wisconsin Legislature has its own Sedition Caucus: 15 state legislators who signed a letter to Vice President Mike Pence asking him to reject the Electoral College vote certification. ^[31]

After the second impeachment trial of Trump in 2021, which was related to the insurrection, journalist John Nichols used the term to describe the 43 Republican senators who voted not to convict Trump. ^[32]

Members of Congress described by the term

A total of 147 members of Congress voted in some form to invalidate the electoral college vote count of the 2020 presidential election: 139 in the House of Representatives, and 8 in the Senate. ^[33]

Senate

The eight Republican senators who would be part of the Sedition Caucus by the original definition include: ^[34]

Portrait	Name	State	Party		Voted to reject the electoral votes from
					Arizona	Pennsylvania
	Ted Cruz	Texas		Republican
	Josh Hawley	Missouri		Republican
	Cindy Hyde-Smith	Mississippi		Republican
	John Kennedy	Louisiana		Republican
	Cynthia Lummis	Wyoming		Republican
	Roger Marshall	Kansas		Republican
	Rick Scott	Florida		Republican
	Tommy Tuberville	Alabama		Republican

House of Representatives

The 139 Republican members of the House of Representatives who would be part of the sedition caucus by the original definition include (alphabetically by each state): ^[33]

Name	District	Party		Voted to reject the electoral votes from
				Arizona	Pennsylvania
Robert Aderholt	AL-4		Republican
Mo Brooks	AL-5		Republican
Jerry Carl	AL-1		Republican
Barry Moore	AL-2		Republican
Gary Palmer	AL-6		Republican
Mike Rogers	AL-3		Republican
Andy Biggs	AZ-5		Republican
Paul Gosar	AZ-4		Republican
Debbie Lesko	AZ-8		Republican
David Schweikert	AZ-6		Republican
Rick Crawford	AR-1		Republican
Ken Calvert	CA-42		Republican
Mike Garcia	CA-25		Republican
Darrell Issa	CA-50		Republican
Doug LaMalfa	CA-1		Republican
Kevin McCarthy	CA-23		Republican
Devin Nunes	CA-22		Republican
Jay Obernolte	CA-8		Republican
Lauren Boebert	CO-3		Republican
Doug Lamborn	CO-5		Republican
Kat Cammack	FL-3		Republican
Mario Diaz-Balart	FL-25		Republican
Byron Donalds	FL-19		Republican
Neal Dunn	FL-2		Republican
Scott Franklin	FL-15		Republican
Matt Gaetz	FL-1		Republican
Carlos A. Giménez	FL-26		Republican
Brian Mast	FL-18		Republican
Bill Posey	FL-8		Republican
John Rutherford	FL-4		Republican
Greg Steube	FL-17		Republican
Daniel Webster	FL-11		Republican
Rick W. Allen	GA-12		Republican
Buddy Carter	GA-1		Republican
Andrew Clyde	GA-9		Republican
Marjorie Taylor Greene	GA-14		Republican
Jody Hice	GA-10		Republican
Barry Loudermilk	GA-11		Republican
Russ Fulcher	ID-1		Republican
Mike Bost	IL-12		Republican
Mary Miller	IL-15		Republican
Jim Baird	IN-4		Republican
Jim Banks	IN-3		Republican
Greg Pence	IN-6		Republican
Jackie Walorski	IN-2		Republican
Ron Estes	KS-4		Republican
Jake LaTurner	KS-2		Republican		did not vote [b]
Tracey Mann	KS-1		Republican
Hal Rogers	KY-5		Republican
Garret Graves	LA-6		Republican
Clay Higgins	LA-3		Republican
Mike Johnson	LA-4		Republican
Steve Scalise	LA-1		Republican
Andy Harris	MD-1		Republican
Jack Bergman	MI-1		Republican
Lisa McClain	MI-10		Republican
Tim Walberg	MI-7		Republican
Michelle Fischbach	MN-7		Republican
Jim Hagedorn	MN-1		Republican
Michael Guest	MS-3		Republican
Trent Kelly	MS-1		Republican
Steven Palazzo	MS-4		Republican
Sam Graves	MO-6		Republican
Vicky Hartzler	MO-4		Republican
Billy Long	MO-7		Republican
Blaine Luetkemeyer	MO-3		Republican
Jason Smith	MO-8		Republican
Matt Rosendale	MT-AL		Republican
Adrian Smith	NE-3		Republican
Dan Bishop	NC-9		Republican
Ted Budd	NC-13		Republican
Madison Cawthorn	NC-11		Republican
Virginia Foxx	NC-5		Republican
Richard Hudson	NC-8		Republican
Greg Murphy	NC-3		Republican
David Rouzer	NC-7		Republican
Jeff Van Drew	NJ-2		Republican
Yvette Herrell	NM-2		Republican
Chris Jacobs	NY-27		Republican
Nicole Malliotakis	NY-11		Republican
Elise Stefanik	NY-21		Republican
Lee Zeldin	NY-1		Republican
Steve Chabot	OH-1		Republican
Warren Davidson	OH-8		Republican
Bob Gibbs	OH-7		Republican
Bill Johnson	OH-6		Republican
Jim Jordan	OH-4		Republican
Stephanie Bice	OK-5		Republican
Tom Cole	OK-4		Republican
Kevin Hern	OK-1		Republican
Frank Lucas	OK-3		Republican
Markwayne Mullin	OK-2		Republican
Cliff Bentz	OR-2		Republican
John Joyce	PA-13		Republican
Fred Keller	PA-12		Republican
Mike Kelly	PA-16		Republican
Daniel Meuser	PA-9		Republican
Scott Perry	PA-10		Republican
Guy Reschenthaler	PA-14		Republican
Lloyd Smucker	PA-11		Republican
Glenn Thompson	PA-15		Republican
Jeff Duncan	SC-3		Republican
Ralph Norman	SC-5		Republican
Tom Rice	SC-7		Republican
William Timmons	SC-4		Republican
Joe Wilson	SC-2		Republican
Tim Burchett	TN-2		Republican
Scott DesJarlais	TN-4		Republican
Chuck Fleischmann	TN-3		Republican
Mark E. Green	TN-7		Republican
Diana Harshbarger	TN-1		Republican
David Kustoff	TN-8		Republican
John Rose	TN-6		Republican
Jodey Arrington	TX-19		Republican
Brian Babin	TX-36		Republican
Michael C. Burgess	TX-26		Republican
John Carter	TX-31		Republican
Michael Cloud	TX-27		Republican
Pat Fallon	TX-4		Republican
Louie Gohmert	TX-1		Republican
Lance Gooden	TX-5		Republican
Ronny Jackson	TX-13		Republican
Troy Nehls	TX-22		Republican
August Pfluger	TX-11		Republican
Pete Sessions	TX-17		Republican
Beth Van Duyne	TX-24		Republican
Randy Weber	TX-14		Republican
Roger Williams	TX-25		Republican
Ron Wright	TX-6		Republican
Burgess Owens	UT-4		Republican
Chris Stewart	UT-2		Republican
Ben Cline	VA-6		Republican
Bob Good	VA-5		Republican
Morgan Griffith	VA-9		Republican
Robert J. Wittman	VA-1		Republican
Carol Miller	WV-3		Republican
Alexander Mooney	WV-2		Republican
Scott L. Fitzgerald	WI-5		Republican
Tom Tiffany	WI-7		Republican

See also

• Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election
• Freedom Caucus
• Republican efforts to restrict voting following the 2020 presidential election
• Republican reactions to Donald Trump's claims of 2020 election fraud
• United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack public hearings

Notes

1. At the time, twelve senators had announced they would object to the certification. Kelly Loeffler also announced she would object, leading Rubin to call the group the "Dirty Baker's Dozen". However, following the storming of the U.S. Capitol, several of these Republican senators dropped their objections, leading only six to object to Arizona and seven to object to Pennsylvania. ^[12] Rubin then referred to the six who objected to Arizona as the "Dirty Half Dozen". ^[13]
2. LaTurner missed the Pennsylvania vote due to a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.

References

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