The Cobb County GOP has canceled its prayer vigil Thursday to honor the pro-Donald Trump insurrectionists who stampeded into the Capitol to try to prevent Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s victory.
The county party cited “mischaracterization of the event scheduled for January 6th and the ensuing concerns for the safety of those in attendance.” Earlier, Cobb GOP chair Salleigh Grubbs had defended the program as a way to honor those who suffered a “miscarriage of justice.”
The details of the event, which emerged Sunday, sparked a torrent of criticism -- and a nickname from state Rep. Teri Anulewicz, who called it an “homage to treason.”
A Cobb County GOP committee is holding a Jan. 6 program and candlelight vigil for the “J6 patriots” in the violent mob that overran the Capitol. The Cobb GOP was once the heart of the mainstream GOP in Georgia, but Trump’s rise has pulled the local party to the far right. #gapol pic.twitter.com/Wq35ZVRFhB
— Greg Bluestein (@bluestein) January 2, 2022
The Cobb GOP’s Jan. 6 program would have veered sharply from the solemn ceremonies planned on Thursday to remember the day that the deadly mob ransacked the U.S. Capitol.
The two-hour program envisioned a livestream of Trump’s now-canceled press conference from Florida, along with a call to action for Cobb Republicans.
It would have concluded with a candlelight vigil for the “J6 Patriots” – the shorthand that extremists have created for the rioters who sought to overthrow the government, including at least 30 who are awaiting court dates for the most serious crimes that day.
In another sharp contrast, the event was to be held just hours after the funeral of the late U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, an iconic figure in the Cobb GOP who built his career on working with political opponents.
Jason Shepherd, a former Cobb County Republican Party chair who had criticized the program, expressed relief that the event was canned.
“They made the right choice,” he said. “It will go a long way into encouraging unity among Cobb Republicans.”
