Politics

Calls grow for resignation of R.I. lawmaker who spread conspiracy theory on Washington riot

Republican state Rep. Justin Price claimed Antifa was responsible for the violent siege on the Capitol building, a debunked conspiracy theory.

Pedestrians walk past the Rhode Island State House, March 1, 2020, in Providence. AP Photo/David Goldman

By Christopher Gavin

4 minutes to read

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A Rhode Island state lawmaker, who marched to the U.S. Capitol last week and spread a false conspiracy theory that Antifa was behind the Washington, D.C., riot, is facing calls to resign.

State Rep. Justin Price wrote in tweets that he “marched to the Capitol” among “peaceful patriots,” according to The Boston Globe. However, Price noted that he did not enter the building and said Antifa “false flagged” the “Trump rally,” the newspaper reports.

A day before he left Rhode Island for the nation’s capital, the Richmond Republican also refused to wear a mask during the opening of the 2021 legislative session, where he was sworn in, according to the Globe.

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The FBI has said there is no indication that Antifa was involved in the violent siege at the Capitol building on Jan 6.

Price’s participation in the Washington demonstrations, pushing of the debunked Antifa theory, and refusal to wear a face covering spurred a statement from General Treasurer Seth Magaziner, a Democrat, who on Saturday urged Price to resign.

“At a time when American democracy is under siege from conspiracy theorists and white supremacists determined to overturn the free and fair Presidential election, Representative Justin Price has abused his platform by amplifying false conspiracy theories surrounding the attack on the U.S. Capitol,” Magaziner said. “His behavior risks inflaming an already charged situation by encouraging those seeking to overturn the election.”

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If Price does not resign, the House Republican caucus “should expel him to make clear that his behavior does not represent the Republican Party of our state,” he said.

“When the Rhode Island House of Representatives met last week, Representative Price refused to wear a mask, putting his colleagues and staff members at risk,” Magaziner said.

“As elected officials we are duty bound to defend our democratic system of government, to tell our constituents the truth, and to promote public health in the midst of this pandemic,” he added.

Price did not immediately return a request for comment from Boston.com.

House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, a Warwick Democrat, vowed on Sunday to discipline any representative who is found to have committed federal crimes in Washington on Wednesday, including possible expulsion.

“The acts of domestic terrorism in Washington, D.C. last Wednesday, aimed at overturning the Presidential election, were treasonous, illegal, and despicable,” Shekarchi reportedly said in a statement.

“The U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island has vowed to investigate and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law anyone who traveled from Rhode Island to commit federal crimes at our nation’s Capitol,” he continued. “If any state representative committed such crimes, the House of Representatives will act swiftly and decisively to the fullest extent possible under Article VI, Section 7 of the Rhode Island Constitution. Let’s not forget that five Americans died on that tragic day.”

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Under that section of the state Constitution, the House may “punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.”

House Minority Leader Blake Filippi, a Republican from Block Island, responded in a tweet: “House members are expelled for bad acts, not bad thoughts. There are no allegations that Rep. Price did anything other than attend what he believed to be a lawful protest, and to express his opinion about what happened that sad day — and this is where a House inquiry ends.”

Still, Democrats say Price should face consequences.

Cranston Democratic state Rep. Brandon Potter, a freshman legislator, issued a statement, in part, saying “it is clear (Price) is unfit for office.”

“I call for his immediate resignation from the Rhode Island House of Representatives and I ask my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to join me in demanding accountability and demonstrating responsible, bipartisan leadership at the time when we need it most,” Potter said.

The Rhode Island Democratic Women’s Caucus called for Price to resign or be expelled from office.

“Representative Price admits to enthusiastically attending the Jan. 6 Washington D.C. event — an event where many of the participants wore or carried racist, anti-semitic, anti-democratic items such as shirts saying ‘Camp Auschwitz’ and other pro-Nazi slogans, Confederate flags, and signs and shirts boasting of the subversion of the democratic process on January 6,” the caucus said in a press release. “These rioters stormed our Capitol on Wednesday in a failed attempt to disrupt the certification of a free and fair election. Marching alongside these people marks Price as an anti-American, anti-democracy seditionist. As the FBI investigates the death and destruction the terrorists left in their wake, we hope that Price is held accountable for any role he may have played during this dark moment in our nation’s history.”

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The caucus is urging members to sign an online petition on MoveOn.org that calls for Price’s resignation or expulsion, which has garnered over 1,700 signatures.

Another petition on Change.org urging Price to resign had received over 1,000 signatures as of late Monday morning.

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