Opinion by Hal Brown
As far as I’m concerned the video Rep. Goetz posted on Twitter last month proves that Russel Honoré was an excellent choice to lead the post Jan. 6th task force overseeing the protection of the Capitol. On Monday he briefed Congress on the recommendations of the task force. Watch the video below and see what you think/
I found this tweet by clicking the links in this NY Times column: “Don’t Let QAnon Bully Congress: “Allowing the U.S. government to be held hostage by political extremists is unacceptable” by Michelle Cottle and found the video Rep. Matt Goetz posted on Twitter on Feb. 18th attacking retired Army lieutenant general Russel Honoré
Congress can now start haggling over which measures to adopt. Don’t look for the process to be silky smooth. Republicans, many of them desperate to downplay the Jan. 6 tragedy, are already attacking General Honoré as biased. The general has not been shy about criticizing lawmakers and others he regards as having fed the postelection chaos, and he has suggested that some Capitol Police officers may have been complicit in allowing rioters into the building.
Representative Matt Gaetz, the Florida delegation’s mini-Trump, is in full froth. “Pelosi hired a bigot to hunt MAGA,” he charged last month. Last Tuesday, Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to the speaker, arguing that General Honoré’s criticism of the police and lawmakers was “disqualifying.” On Thursday, Tucker Carlson told viewers: “Honoré is an unhinged partisan extremist. He’s nuttier than anyone affiliated with QAnon.”
Here’s a more recent gem:
The following night Carlson attacked him again.
www.mediamatters.org/… I wonder if Carlson’s people tried unsuccessfully to find a photo of Honoré where he didn’t look like someone you’d trust with your life.
Prior to this Honoré was best known as “the Ragin’ Cajun” (he describes himself as an "African-American Creole") who was commander of Joint Task Force Katrina responsible for coordinating military relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina–affected areas.
I was wondering whether he had a career in elected politics. Reading down his Wikipedia page I found this:
In late August 2009, there were reports that Honoré would run for U.S. Senate in 2010 in his native Louisiana as a Republican against incumbent Republican Senator David Vitter.[12] On August 31, when asked point-blank on CNN about the reports, Honoré expressed admiration for individuals who aspire to serve in public office but said that he had no plans to seek the Senate seat, as he was unlikely to win with the viewpoints he currently holds.
The 2022 United States Senate election in Louisiana will be held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the Senate. The incumbent GOP U.S. senator whose seat will be in contention is John Kennedy who has not yet declared his intention to run for a second term. It remains to be seen whether Honoré will decide to run for that seat and if he does whether he’d run as a moderate (and anti-Trump) Republican or a Democrat. Democrats can win Senate seats from Louisiana as Mary Landrieu (January 3, 1997 –
January 3, 2015) and John Breaux (January 3, 1987 – January 3, 2005) proved.
I have no doubt that the people on Louisiana haven’t forgotten their Ragin’ Cajun. This is what New Orleans mayor, Ray Nagin, said about him after Katrina:
Now, I will tell you this -- and I give the president some credit on this -- he sent one John Wayne dude down here that can get some stuff done, and his name is [Lt.] Gen. [Russel] Honore.
And he came off the doggone chopper, and he started cussing and people started moving. And he's getting some stuff done.
They ought to give that guy -- if they don't want to give it to me, give him full authority to get the job done, and we can save some people.
Tucker Carlson should be wary that while his attacks against Honoré will go over well with the national Trump base he is treading on perilous ground in Louisiana especially if Honoré runs for Senate there. Even though Trump won big there, Honoré is a home state boy who made good.
The last time he was in the national news was after after hurricane Maria: See Retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who led Katrina relief, slams response to Puerto Rico.
Numerous senators have served in the military but as far as I can tell if elected he’d be the first three star general.
Addendum: Honoré is the author of three books:
