The list of targets for the 2022 Trump vendetta ride just got shorter. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH16) who voted for impeachment of the former president will not seek reelection.
Ohio Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, will not seek reelection in 2022.
Gonzalez, who was a wide receiver at Ohio State and a first-round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts, told the New York Times on Thursday that his decision to end his congressional career after two terms was primarily due to the challenges of living in both Washington, D.C., and Cleveland, Ohio.
But he acknowledged he would have faced a “brutally hard primary” and called Trump “a cancer for the country.”
In February, Trump endorsed Max Miller , his former White House adviser, in his primary bid for Gonzalez’s seat — the former president’s first of many revenge endorsements of those challenging his Republican foes.
“Politically, the environment is so toxic, especially in our own party right now,” he said. “You can fight your butt off and win this thing, but are you really going to be happy? And the answer is, probably not.”
The Capitol riot was the turning point for Gonzalez, despite supporting many of Trump’s policies. In a statement after his impeachment vote, he cited Trump’s “lack of response” as rioters breached the Capitol as driving his decision.
That led to threats. Gonzalez, who has two young children, got messages from people online who threatened to come to his house, prompting the congressman to have a security consultant assess his home’s security. He recalled two police officers meeting him at the Cleveland airport to escort him after his impeachment vote.
“That’s one of those moments where you say, ‘Is this really what I want for my family when they travel, to have my wife and kids escorted through the airport?’” Gonzalez said.
I wonder how many voters thought he was the other Anthony Gonzalez?Report
I should’ve suspected something when I saw a sign for one of his potential primary competitors in front of the local BP.
In any case, I’ll take his reasons at face value. I still believe he had a good chance of winning, but the primary would have been a clown show and I don’t blame him for not wanting to put his family through that. Not that I imagine he was looking forward to having to do a primary campaign in this environment, when I believe he hasn’t even run a serious primary yet.
That said, I doubt this is the last you’ll hear of him in Ohio politics.Report
Do you think he’ll try for something local? Jump ship? Something else?Report