Congressman Bennie Thompson speaks at the DNC, August 21, 2024.
- The lone Democrat in the Magnolia State’s federal delegation spoke to party faithful in Chicago ahead of former President Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey and Vice President nominee Tim Walz.
Mississippi Congressman Bennie Thompson took the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday night following a video proclaiming that if former President Donald Trump is re-elected, “he will never be held accountable” for the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Thompson ties January 6th and Jim Crow parallels
Democrats have long sought to blame Trump for the events of that day.
Thompson, who chaired the Nancy Pelosi-appointed Select Committee to Investigate January 6th, opened his remarks by saying, “On January 6th, like most of my colleagues, I had one goal – to uphold the votes of the American people.”
He said the “members of that violent mob” who forced their way into the Capitol had another goal, “they wanted to stop the peaceful transfer of power for the first time in American democracy.”
“Thank God they failed,” Thompson said as the DNC crowd cheered.
The lone Democrat in the Magnolia State’s federal delegation continued by saying, “It took a long time to get here, and we are not going back.”
Thompson then moved into recalling “the dark history” of the nation, a history he said was his own.
“In this life, my father never cast a vote because of Jim Crow. So, I dedicated my career to protecting the votes against violence and discrimination,” Thompson said.
During the Jim Crow era following the U.S. Civil War, Democrats took over power in Southern legislatures and used intimidation tactics to suppress black voters, as detailed by Howard University. Those Democratic lawmakers “began passing more restrictive voter registration and electoral laws, as well as passing legislation to segregate blacks and whites.”
Congressman’s speech looks ahead
Thompson said the “insurrectionists” on January 6th tried to take away the hard fought right to vote without fear of intimidation.
“They did it to rob millions of Americans of their votes. They did it because Donald Trump couldn’t handle losing,” Congressman Thompson claimed.
Thompson said Trump lied about election fraud and called “his conspiracy-led mob to Washington,” adding that Trump would rather “subvert democracy than submit to it.”
“Now, he’s plotting again,” Thompson said, telling the Democratic Party faithful, “Choose democracy, not political violence.”
Congressman Thompson concluded by urging voters to choose Vice President Kamala Harris over Trump.
Former President Bill Clinton and Mississippi-native Oprah Winfrey followed Thompson on the DNC stage before Minnesota Governor Tim Walz formally accepted the party’s nomination for Vice President. Kamala Harris will speak Thursday night, becoming the party’s official nominee for president after incumbent President Joe Biden stepped aside last month and endorsed her.
