Here’s what voters had to say…
In Bucks County, Pennsylvania, an area that has a blend of well-to-do neighborhoods and rolling farmlands, the response to the Select Committee’s Jan. 6 hearing is mixed.
The county, in one of the few states that remain competitive for both Republicans and Democrats, had voters with very different views.
Dan Piggott, a resident of the county who had visited Washington with his parents in 1973 as the Watergate scandal was unfolding, found the memory resonant when watching Thursday’s opening hearing.
“I think what this administration did is far worse. We all see what happened,” Piggott noted of Trump’s “attempted coup.”
But his views weren’t shared by other county residents, some of whom didn’t even watch the hearing, and others described it as “rubbish.”
The views of Bucks County residents are especially notable because of the number of swing voters.
The county sided with Democrats in the 2016 and 2020 Presidential elections but helped re-elect GOP Sen. Patrick Rooney and sent Republican Brian Fitzpatrick to the House in 2016, re-electing him in every midterm since.
Nevertheless, the political fallout from the hearing will be significant in a state central to the midterm elections, having competitive U.S. Senate and gubernatorial races.
The Jan. 6 riots will likely play a role in both elections.
GOP Senate nominee, Dr. Mehmet Oz, was endorsed by Trump, and Doug Mastriano, a Republican gubernatorial candidate has been vocal about his support for Trump and his claims the 2020 Presidential election was marred by widespread voter fraud. Mastriano was also present at the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
But, the negative implications of the Select committee’s hearing could be offset by rising inflation, if Republicans have their way.
