Arizona GOP censures Rusty Bowers, who testified before Jan. 6 House committee
Washington — The Republican Party of Arizona's executive committee censured Rusty Bowers, the speaker of the state House who testified on Capitol Hill about the events surrounding the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol, on Tuesday night.
Kelli Ward, chairwoman of the Arizona GOP, announced the condemnation by the panel on Twitter, saying Bowers is "no longer a Republican in good standing & we call on Republicans to replace him at the ballot box in the August primary."
The censure resolution from the state party criticized Bowers for a number of actions as a state House member, including on election integrity, immigration and gender identity. The measure also claimed Bowers "has not been forthright in his interactions between others in legislative leadership, Republican Party leadership, his dealings with Maricopa County bureaucrats, lobbyists, consultants, the liberal media."
"Bowers has lost the confidence of a majority of Republican Party leaders and his colleagues in the legislature in the state of Arizona," the resolution stated.
Bowers testified publicly before the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol last month alongside elections officials from Georgia who discussed how former President Donald Trump and his allies pressured them to toss out election results from their states.
The Arizona House speaker detailed how John Eastman, a conservative attorney who was behind a plan to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and Rep. Andy Biggs, a Republican from Arizona, urged him to decertify President Biden's electors. He also recalled receiving a call from Trump and lawyer Rudy Giuliani after the election, during which Giuliani claimed to have evidence of voter fraud in Arizona, evidence that never materialized.
Bowers told the committee the scheme to replace Mr. Biden's electors with a fake slate for Trump was a "tragic parody" and emotionally discussed protesters showing up at his home after he defied the former president and refused to go along with his plan to reverse the election results in Arizona.
