Chapitre 1
A Congressman's Reckoning with Democracy Under Fire
In the chaotic aftermath of January 6, 2021, as Kevin McCarthy struggled through fourteen humiliating rejections in his bid for House Speaker, Adam Kinzinger watched his Republican Party transform before his eyes. The spectacle revealed how far GOP leaders would go to appease extremists, with McCarthy making concessions to conspiracy theorists like Marjorie Taylor Greene-who once claimed there was "never any evidence" a plane hit the Pentagon on 9/11. This wasn't the party Kinzinger had joined as an idealistic young conservative from Illinois. His memoir "Renegade" has become required reading in political science courses nationwide, with figures from across the political spectrum citing it as a crucial first-person account of democracy's near-death experience. The book traces Kinzinger's journey from small-town Illinois to Congress and his eventual break with a party consumed by authoritarianism, offering an insider's view of how the GOP descended from Reagan's optimistic conservatism to Trump's cult of personality.
Chapitre 2
From Midwestern Values to Political Awakening
Growing up in Bloomington, Illinois, Kinzinger was raised with the kind of Midwestern values that shaped his moral compass. His mother Betty Jo, a dedicated third-grade teacher, instilled a love of learning and service. His father Rus worked in business before leading a faith-based organization helping the homeless, creating retail shops where customers paid small amounts for clothing-preserving their dignity while raising funds for more services.
Faith was central to the Kinzinger household. The family attended an Independent Fundamental Baptist church, a tradition demanding strict adherence to doctrines and rules. On a scale where liberal Episcopalians rate a 1 and Jehovah's Witnesses an 11, IFBs were about an 8-prohibiting smoking, drinking, dancing, secular music, most movies, and enforcing strict gender roles. Fortunately, Kinzinger's parents took a moderate view, joining for community rather than dogma.
"Though firmly Christian and pro-life, they didn't believe pastors were infallible or that people in other churches were lesser Christians," Kinzinger writes. This moderation occasionally led to "incidents"-like when young Adam wore shorts to a church outing and was sent home to change, or when saying "Son of a biscuit!" earned a scolding that "Jesus knows what you're saying!"
Kinzinger's political interest sparked in Jacksonville, Florida, when Democrat John Lewis (who attended their church) ran for mayor. His defeat drove Kinzinger to learn more about politics, with Ronald Reagan becoming his model officeholder. In 1992, when Kinzinger was fourteen, his father took him to a Christian Coalition conference where President George H.W. Bush spoke. Bush's rhetoric revealed his unease with the Christian Coalition's agenda-he didn't want to "go back to the days of Ozzie and Harriet" and talked of global cooperation, positions at odds with the audience's desires.
What if we could see the early warning signs of how religious fundamentalism would later merge with political extremism? This conference represented the first connection between traditional Republicans and Christian activists-a bond that would strengthen under George W. Bush and eventually transform the party under Trump.
Chapitre 3
Politics in a Bygone Era
Kinzinger's first political debate in 1998 earned a headline that seems quaint today: "CORDIALITY MARKS DEBATE." At twenty years old and still in college, he challenged incumbent Allen Ware for a McLean County Board seat, winning by a slim margin of 1,725-1,580 votes. The civility of their campaign reflected the neighborly traditions of rural America, where candidates didn't sling mud or conduct opposition research.
His path to politics wasn't without stumbles. After a disastrous first year at Illinois State University where he embraced fraternity life and earned a 0.8 GPA, Kinzinger was expelled. During his academic exile, he worked as furniture "manager" at Kay's Merchandise before being readmitted under strict probation. His grades improved dramatically, and he won the county board seat while still completing his degree.
The county board provided perfect training for understanding how politics affects everyday life. McLean County sprawls across 1,183 square miles (larger than Rhode Island) with 150,000 residents and over 1,000 miles of vital roads supporting a billion-dollar agricultural economy. Rural communities like Kinzinger's were distinct-predominantly evangelical Christian, with higher gun ownership rates and fewer minorities than urban areas.
"Though residents resented 'Big Government,' they welcomed farm subsidies that reached record levels of $23 billion nationwide during my first year on the board," Kinzinger notes with a hint of irony.
When his father entered politics after state senator John Maitland resigned, Kinzinger witnessed the harsh realities of campaign finance. Running against experienced politician Bill Brady, his father's campaign suffered from poor management-initially led by a retired FBI agent whose strategy consisted mainly of "praying on it." Despite his father's broader experience and moral stance against accepting donations from liquor and gambling interests, Brady's advantages in funding ($175,000 to their $50,000) and name recognition led to his decisive primary victory.
This experience left Kinzinger's father disillusioned with politics, particularly the fundraising aspect-a disillusionment his son would eventually share, though for different reasons.
Chapitre 4
From Civilian to Military Pilot
The September 11 attacks changed everything for Kinzinger. Driving to work at a small technology company, he heard the news on Howard Stern's radio show. When the second plane hit the South Tower, Stern declared "It's war," reflecting the feelings of millions of Americans. Kinzinger had coincidentally begun the process of enlisting in the military nine months earlier, but 9/11 gave his service deeper purpose.
Despite always wanting to be a military pilot, Kinzinger had been discouraged by the belief he needed exceptional math and science skills. Eventually, he discovered his college degree qualified him to take the tests for Air Force training. After 9/11, he received a spot with the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Refueling Wing.
"Despite common misconceptions, Guard pilots are often more experienced than regular Air Force pilots, performing identical duties while maintaining civilian careers," Kinzinger explains.
At Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma, he learned to fly the massive KC-135 refueling tanker-a 136-foot aircraft with a 131-foot wingspan that could climb faster than many fighters, reach 50,000 feet, and travel over 11,000 miles on one fill-up. The aerial refueling process was like a ballet performed six miles above earth, with aircraft worth $100 million flying within fifty feet of each other.
Have you ever considered how much trust is required when two pilots maneuver multi-million-dollar aircraft to connect in midair at hundreds of miles per hour? This delicate dance would later provide Kinzinger with a metaphor for the precision and trust required in politics-qualities increasingly absent in Washington.
As a military pilot, Kinzinger underwent intense survival training to prepare for worst-case scenarios. The SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape) school taught everything from escaping handcuffs to surviving captivity. After classroom instruction, trainees endured a harrowing wilderness simulation where they learned to overcome fears (Kinzinger conquered his spider phobia and killed a rabbit for food), before being "captured" and subjected to mock interrogations.
This training proved valuable later when Kinzinger instinctively intervened in Milwaukee to subdue a knife-wielding attacker who had slashed a woman's throat-an act that earned him the Airman's Medal, approved by the president and ranked higher than the Bronze Star.
Chapitre 5
Global Perspective Through Military Service
By the time Kinzinger qualified as a pilot, America had already invaded Afghanistan, driven Al Qaeda from its camps, captured 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and deposed Saddam Hussein in Iraq. Unlike many who stuck to the bars near military installations, Kinzinger immersed himself in local cultures during overseas postings, recognizing that understanding different perspectives could prove vital in conflict zones.
In Guam, 6,000 miles from the US mainland, Kinzinger supported bombers and surveillance planes patrolling North Korean and Chinese coastlines. These flights irritated America's adversaries but allowed intelligence gathering on their air defense systems. The Chinese had reduced dangerous interception maneuvers following a 2001 incident where a fighter collided with a US Navy EP-3 surveillance plane, resulting in one of the worst intelligence compromises in history.
In Turkey, Kinzinger operated from NATO's Incirlik base, a Cold War relic being revitalized to support operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Turkey's democracy remained a model for the Muslim world with Prime Minister Erdogan pursuing EU membership and beginning negotiations with Turkey's Kurdish population. Years later, Kinzinger would watch in horror as Trump betrayed these same Kurds by removing American troops protecting them in Syria, allowing Erdogan's forces to kill over two hundred Kurdish civilians.
In Colombia, Kinzinger refueled planes hunting illegal coca farms and the FARC-hardcore Marxist rebels who had terrorized Colombia since 1964. The mission supported Plan Colombia, a $10 billion American initiative that combined military action with social programs, civil reforms, and crop substitution efforts. Despite skeptics, the program worked remarkably well, reducing coca production, seizing more drugs, reforming institutions, and cutting homicides and kidnappings by two-thirds.
"This success affirmed America's role as the 'indispensable nation' in addressing international issues," Kinzinger writes, "though our history of backing authoritarians in Latin America complicated our pro-democracy efforts."
Chapitre 6
The Reality of War
At thirty thousand feet, Iraq's landscape revealed little of the war below-just tan deserts, green farms along rivers, and quiet villages. This peaceful aerial view belied the growing insurgency and fear on the ground in 2005, a stark contrast to the war's early "shock and awe" phase when American forces had taken Baghdad in just three weeks.
Unlike ground troops facing direct combat, Kinzinger's tanker crew was assigned to Al Udeid Air Base outside Doha, Qatar. This tiny, mega-rich petroleum state was governed by a pragmatic monarchy that preserved itself through relatively progressive policies and wealth distribution among its 250,000 citizens-the world's richest population.
Kinzinger's closest encounter with the war's reality came when his plane was refitted to transport wounded soldiers from Afghanistan to Germany. Speaking with the injured soldiers, he was struck by their dedication-one soldier with blood-filled eyes and covered in bandages only wanted to return to his unit, saying "I left my boys behind."
What does it say about human nature that soldiers primarily fight for the bonds formed with each other rather than abstract patriotism? This insight would later help Kinzinger understand how loyalty could blind his Republican colleagues to Trump's abuses.
By 2006, with Iraq deteriorating, Kinzinger transferred from the KC-135 wing in Milwaukee to the RC-26 group in Madison, seeking more direct involvement. After training, he was posted to Balad, about fifty miles north of Baghdad, joining a highly classified operation. Their unmarked RC-26 surveillance planes, packed with electronic eavesdropping devices and cameras, could track insurgent commanders and Iranian advisers through cell phone signals.
The anti-insurgent missions carried far greater risks than refueling flights. Departing Balad required fancy flying to avoid small arms fire-racing down the runway, skimming over the boundary fence, then climbing at such a steep angle that bullets couldn't reach them. The base was nicknamed "Mortaritaville" due to frequent incoming fire alerts.
By 2009, the surge was working. American casualties dropped by 80%, insurgent fighters were reduced by half, and infrastructure projects restored services. With the war winding down, Kinzinger decided to return to Illinois and run for Congress in the 2010 election.
Chapitre 7
The Tea Party and Congressional Ambitions
On May 19, 2009, Kinzinger declared his congressional candidacy before nine people at the Boy Scout Museum in Ottawa, Illinois. He emphasized wanting to protect freedoms and improve lives, promising to be "a different kind of Republican candidate" who would reach out to Black and Hispanic voters who typically supported Democrats but shared his values.
Yet beyond his stated patriotic motivations, Kinzinger recognized another universal driver pushing him toward politics: ego. Unlike Trump's malignant version, his resembled Reagan's healthier optimism. His moderate conservatism and generally upbeat, respectful demeanor gave him crossover appeal in a swing district, though he didn't fully grasp how the GOP's deepening culture war would eventually make this less of an asset.
During his final deployment in Iraq in early 2009, Kinzinger contemplated his campaign positions. On domestic issues, he aligned with conservative orthodoxy on keeping Bush-era tax cuts and reforming Social Security but deviated by supporting a gas tax increase for infrastructure and proposing free clinics for underserved communities.
The Tea Party movement emerged as a powerful force during his campaign, fueled by opposition to Obama's policies, particularly healthcare reform. While partly organic, beginning with small rallies against economic bailouts, it received significant support from deep-pocketed right-wing organizations and conservative media. The movement attracted mostly older, wealthier, religiously conservative voters who got their news from Rush Limbaugh and Fox News.
"Though I questioned some of their beliefs and methods, I couldn't deny the energy they brought to the Republican Party," Kinzinger admits. He strategically told Tea Party supporters to "keep the conversation respectable," allowing him to accept their help while avoiding the movement's disruptive tendencies.
His congressional race against Democrat Debbie Halvorson grew increasingly heated. She fired a staffer who spread stolen valor rumors about his military service, and her campaign ran ads portraying him as pro-China and inexperienced, condescendingly saying, "Young man, you have no idea what you are doing."
Kinzinger countered by portraying her as a career politician tied to Obama and Nancy Pelosi and criticized her refusal to hold town halls after the Tea Party protests. His moderate language, outreach beyond the Republican base, and alliance with the Tea Party created momentum that gained national attention. On election day, he won by a surprising 15-point margin, part of the Republican wave that gained control of the House with a sixty-eight-seat gain, the biggest win since 1938.
Chapitre 8
Disillusionment with the Tea Party
Kinzinger's serious skepticism about the Tea Party began as he noticed powerful groups like FreedomWorks and politicians like Rep. Michele Bachmann hijacking it for their own purposes. After the 2010 success, FreedomWorks raised $25 million-twenty-five times more than previous election cycles-spent mostly on establishment Republicans. Bachmann, dubbed the "Queen of Rage," abandoned the movement's anti-spending principles while seeking extra federal funding for her district.
Unlike the charming Speaker John Boehner, who was interested in solving problems rather than hustling for fame, Majority Leader Eric Cantor was overtly ambitious. Cantor, Paul Ryan, and Kevin McCarthy had declared themselves the "Young Guns" and published a book announcing themselves as "A New Generation of Republican Leadership." They assigned themselves roles-Cantor "the leader," Ryan "the thinker," and McCarthy "the strategist"-while suggesting Boehner was too soft on Democrats.
Five months into his term, a crisis loomed as Tea Party representatives refused to support a federal budget compromise and threatened to block a debt ceiling increase. While Kinzinger agreed they needed to cut spending and reduce debt, he wasn't monomaniacal-he hadn't been elected to blindly serve one purpose.
"My reality check showed that slashing the entire budget would blindside many Americans, threatening Social Security, Medicare, veterans' healthcare, student loans, disability services, and mortgage programs," he explains.
Working with Boehner's leadership team, they negotiated a compromise cutting $40 billion in spending and $50 billion in taxes-not what they wanted, but what they could get. It passed despite fifty-nine Republicans opposing it. The Tea Party's debt ceiling obstinance later cost Americans over $1 billion in extra bond payments.
Kinzinger noticed how media shaped constituent opinions when many began conversations with "Rush says" or "Bill says"-referring to Bill O'Reilly, who called opponents "pinheads," and Rush Limbaugh, who made outrageous claims about Democrats welcoming "Islamofascists." This rhetoric was amplified in churches where preachers increasingly framed politics as a war between God's army and Satan's minions, with liberals cast as evil.
"Among Tea Party religious extremists, this belief in opponents as literally evil led to absolute political intransigence, since God demanded nothing less," Kinzinger observes. When a Fox News reporter privately asked if he was "bitter yet," he recognized the toxic environment he'd entered.
Chapitre 9
The Transformation of the Republican Party
After the 2012 election, Kinzinger believed the Tea Party might fade away. The GOP's post-election "autopsy" recommended moving away from ideological purity to attract minority and younger voters. This strategy seemed to work in 2014 when moderate Republicans won elections across the country. Pew Research confirmed the Tea Party's declining influence, with Republican support dropping from 50% in 2010 to 33% in 2014.
But what constitutes "normal" in politics depends on your perspective and when you became engaged. For some Republicans, it means respectful debate and institutional stability. For others, it's perpetual partisan warfare. Kinzinger's earliest political memories formed during Reagan's presidency, where his grandfatherly warmth and leadership style shaped Kinzinger's understanding of how a leader should unite people through positive emotion rather than division.
While House Republicans continued to invoke Reagan's name, they gradually abandoned his approach to bipartisan compromise. Both parties became increasingly combative, with power-either to push through partisan legislation or create gridlock-becoming the primary goal. William F. Buckley's thoughtful conservatism, which had dominated for three decades, was being replaced by raw ambition.
Before the 1960s, most conservative Christians avoided politics, seeing it as Caesar's domain. Pastors were modest shepherds of small congregations, many refusing even to vote. The shift began with televangelists seeking wealth and power through tax-exempt organizations that funded mansions and private jets. Less prominent pastors developed megachurches with tens of thousands of attendees.
The Tea Party weaponized this hybrid of religion and Republican politics. As Kinzinger's media presence grew, particularly on Fox News, he experienced the addictive nature of political fame. The attention was intoxicating-makeup artists making you look good, studio crews treating you like royalty, hosts praising your performance, and colleagues complimenting your appearances.
"Fox made success easy by expecting familiar GOP boilerplate arguments that simply flipped Democratic positions," Kinzinger admits. "Sometimes we didn't even drive the subject-Fox hosts did, like when I complained about Obama renaming Mount McKinley to Denali, calling it an attempt to 'stick it in our eye' despite Alaska having used the native name for forty years."
By 2014, polarization had reached alarming levels-8% of Democrats identified as "consistently liberal" and 9% of Republicans as "consistently conservative," with neither group considering compromise. The portion holding "mixed" political views hit an all-time low of 39%. Media silos represented by Fox and MSNBC led to real-life isolation, with half of consistent conservatives and a third of consistent liberals preferring to live in communities sharing their political views.
Kinzinger was wrong about viewers being "in on the game." Fox News operated like a drug pusher, hooking viewers with increasingly powerful conspiracy theories. Glenn Beck promoted paranoia about the UN's Agenda 21 environmental document, claiming it proved plans for world domination-recycling John Birch Society fears that had once been considered too radical even for conservatives.
Chapitre 10
The Trump Phenomenon
By 2016, the tricorn hats of the Tea Party had been replaced by red MAGA caps as Donald Trump entered the presidential race. The former reality TV host dominated media attention through insults and outrageous statements. Despite calling Iowa voters stupid, he nearly won their caucuses. In New Hampshire, he secured 35% of the vote while Jeb Bush managed just 11%.
Though most Americans were turned off by Trump's behavior, his solid base was enough to prevail in a crowded field. By convention time, Trump had defeated "Little Marco" and "Lyin' Ted," transforming the party into his personal cult. At the convention, Kinzinger witnessed Trump supporters in costume, armed men patrolling outside, and the platform's Ukraine support mysteriously removed.
When the "grab them by the pussy" tape emerged, Kinzinger refused to endorse Trump. By election night, he was persona non grata at local GOP events, with one supporter blaming him personally if Trump lost. He left thinking America would heal after Trump's defeat. He couldn't have been more wrong.
Donald Trump claimed 1.5 million people attended his inauguration-an absurd exaggeration compared to the much smaller crowd Kinzinger witnessed from his seat. But what truly disturbed him was Trump's theatrical performance during the solemn transfer of power. Trump made his entrance with unbuttoned coat and his trademark extra-long red tie hanging six inches below his belt, then raised a fist at the top of the stairs like an autocrat from a history book.
After taking the oath, Trump delivered his dark "American carnage" speech, painting the nation in shadows where previous presidents had offered hope and inspiration. He bragged about his election by "a movement the likes of which the world has never seen" despite having one of the slimmest Electoral College victories in history and losing the popular vote by almost two million.
At the 2017 Republican legislative planning retreat in Philadelphia, Kinzinger got more drunk than he'd ever been in his life, shaken by witnessing Trump's speech in person. Despite campaign promises to be "more presidential than anybody," Trump delivered a rambling word salad of campaign themes, bragging, and non sequiturs.
What disturbed Kinzinger even more than Trump was his colleagues' essentially unanimous conversion to Trump's political cult. Members he respected, who privately considered Trump a mean-spirited buffoon, publicly declared 100% support for him. With a splintered press, a captive Congress, and a slow-moving legal system, Kinzinger saw little hope for restraining Trump.
Chapitre 11
The Breaking Point
Despite witnessing Trump's betrayal of the Kurds, Kinzinger still hesitated when it came to impeaching him over Ukraine. Trump had withheld vital military aid to Ukraine, conditioning it on President Zelenskyy investigating Joe Biden's son and pushing a narrative that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in our elections.
Though Kinzinger criticized Trump's rhetoric about "treason" and "civil war," he ultimately voted against impeachment. With every other Republican voting no, he couldn't imagine standing alone. "I regret this decision 'big time'-had I shown courage, others might have followed, demonstrating the system wasn't completely broken," he confesses.
On January 6th, as the Capitol was under siege, Kinzinger sheltered in his locked congressional office with his gun on the desktop, praying he wouldn't need to use it. Through emergency alerts, he learned of the mob roaming the building, pounding on doors and breaking into offices. In that moment, he realized his party was gone-replaced by a fascist cult of personality built upon decades of increasingly extreme partisan politics.
Republicans had started planning to overturn the election even before results were finalized. Rick Perry texted Mark Meadows with an "AGRESSIVE STRATEGY" to have states reject voters' chosen electors. Donald Trump Jr. followed with a message about controlling multiple paths to victory. Party activists organized alternative pro-Trump electors in six states, which would give Trump a five-vote Electoral College win.
On January 1st, 2021, Kinzinger joined a Republican conference call where Liz Cheney presented a brilliant twenty-one-page legal analysis proving they had no constitutional authority to overturn the election results. McCarthy immediately undermined her, saying, "Liz doesn't speak for the conference. She speaks for herself." Kinzinger spoke up next, warning that January 6th could get violent based on what he was seeing on social media. McCarthy dismissed him with a curt "Okay, Adam. Operator, who's up next?"
On January 6th, Kinzinger brought his Ruger LCP for self-defense given warnings of violence. From his office window, he saw people marching toward the Capitol like a small army. By 2:45 p.m., rioters had breached the building, and he watched in horror as civilians in tactical gear wielding weapons battled police.
Despite the attack, Pelosi reconvened Congress at 9:00 p.m. to finish certifying Biden's victory, though 139 House Republicans and 8 senators still voted against accepting votes from certain states despite no evidence of fraud. The session finally ended around 3:00 a.m. on January 7th.
While Trump refused to accept responsibility for January 6th, Kinzinger became the first Republican to call for Trump's removal via the 25th Amendment, posting a video stating Trump had "become unmoored not just from his duty or even his oath, but from reality itself." This invited immediate backlash, including a painful letter from his dad's cousin Karen Otto who called him "a disappointment" to the family "and to God" and claimed he had joined "the devil's army."
Chapitre 12
The January 6th Committee
When Pelosi offered McCarthy equal partnership in a January 6th committee, he nominated staunch Trump supporters including Jim Jordan, an "attack dog" known for breaking rules and hostile questioning. Pelosi rejected Jordan and Jim Banks while accepting the other three nominees, asking McCarthy to name replacements. Instead, McCarthy withdrew all his nominations, giving Pelosi control over the committee's composition.
After appointing Liz Cheney to one Democratic spot, Pelosi approached Kinzinger through Jamie Raskin. Despite reservations, Kinzinger felt duty-bound to accept, noting how Pelosi skillfully maximized publicity around the appointments while promising independence but ultimately maintaining tight control over the committee's major decisions.
The Capitol was encircled with a seven-foot-high black steel perimeter fence after January 6th-impossible to scale and symbolizing democracy in crisis. As the investigative committee formed, crews began dismantling the physical barrier, raising questions about whether barriers to truth about the insurrection might also be removed.
The committee assembled approximately 120 people including staff, investigators, and lawyers to process an enormous volume of evidence-eventually amassing more than a thousand interviews, a million documents, and hundreds of hours of video footage from multiple sources.
Liz Cheney emerged as the most forceful and informed committee member, often refocusing discussions on the central issue of the attempted coup. Though sometimes abrasive like her father, she was extremely effective. When progress stalled in early 2022, the committee held a retreat at the Library of Congress, where they viewed an original copy of the Gettysburg Address and found inspiration in a mosaic titled "The Law" depicting the contrast between lawlessness and lawful existence.
The committee's witnesses fell into three groups. First were the "Trump-infected zombies" like Roger Stone and John Eastman who refused to answer questions, citing the Fifth Amendment. Second were "partial zombies" like Rudy Giuliani who dodged questions with convenient memory lapses while still defending Trump. The third group included truth-tellers with integrity who had been part of Trump's team but had shown backbone, like Cassidy Hutchinson and Sarah Matthews, who provided damning testimony about Trump's actions and Mark Meadows' inaction during the attack.
During the final hearing, Kinzinger presented evidence of Trump's 187-minute inaction during the Capitol attack. Witnesses described how Trump remained in a dining room watching TV, speaking with Rudy Giuliani, and ignoring pleas to intervene-even from Fox News hosts. Trump told Mark Meadows the rioters "were doing what they should be doing," refused Pentagon calls, and ignored messages from his own children begging him to call off the mob.
Chapitre 13
A New Chapter for Democracy
After leaving Congress, Kinzinger describes feeling calmer and more optimistic, enjoying family life in Houston and the freedom from constant political battles. He compares the transition from Congress to leaving a battlefield, noting how the "guns fell silent" after years of metaphorical fighting.
Meanwhile, justice moves forward as Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes received an eighteen-year prison sentence for sedition, with over a thousand others facing charges for January 6 crimes. Trump himself faces unprecedented legal troubles-from the Manhattan criminal case with 34 felony charges to potential indictments for election interference, document mishandling, business fraud, and incitement to riot.
Despite this accountability, 60% of Republicans still believe Trump's election fraud lies. The party has transformed into what Kinzinger describes as a cult that turns criminals into martyrs and appropriates victimhood. He worries about the GOP's fanatical base of Christian nationalists and the threat of minority rule through gerrymandering and Electoral College manipulation.
Kinzinger promotes his Country First organization, which welcomes people across the political spectrum to defend democracy through civic engagement, ranked-choice voting, and nonpartisan primaries. He argues we need a national movement formed of small groups working together without anger or rejection of opposing views.
Former CIA officer Jamie Winship taught Kinzinger that courage isn't about heroic acts but continuing despite fear-recognizing fear but refusing to let it stop you from doing what's right. This definition of courage perfectly captures Kinzinger's journey from loyal Republican to democracy defender, showing that sometimes the most patriotic act is standing against your own party when it abandons its principles.
As we face continuing threats to our democratic institutions, Kinzinger's story reminds us that democracy requires constant vigilance and occasional acts of political courage from those willing to put country over party. The question remains: will enough Americans follow his example before it's too late?
