Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) is demanding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) “tear down” the wall surrounding the U.S. Capitol, highlighting the hypocrisy of Democrats who spent the last four years decrying such boundaries as unacceptable, particularly on the U.S. border.
“You protect what you love,” Boebert said in the newly released ad outside of the U.S. Capitol. “President Trump built a big, beautiful wall because he loves America and he wanted to secure our country and protect us from drugs, illegal aliens pouring into our communities, and sex traffickers.”
“Democrats, they fought him every step of the way. And now, welcome to Fort Pelosi where Democrats decry walls from within their own, heavily guarded razor wire wall,” she said as she walked alongside the barrier.
“Democrats don’t want to protect you, because they don’t care about you. But they’ll spare no expense protecting themselves,” she continued as a brief montage played, featuring Pelosi, President Joe Biden, and twice-failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton balking at the thought of constructing barriers on the southern border.
“It’s time to cut the crap and remember: This is the People’s House. Madam Speaker, tear down this wall,” the Colorado congresswoman declared, echoing the famous language used by former President Ronald Reagan during a speech in West Berlin in 1987:
The fence, constructed by federal officials following the January 6 Capitol protest, has remained a point of contention among lawmakers and D.C. residents. Even some Democrats expressed that the wall should not morph into a permanent fixture in the nation’s capital.
“There’s a bipartisan sense that we should not create sort of a permanent Great Wall around the Capitol of the United States,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, (D-MD) said, according to the Wall Street Journal:
The D.C. Council and Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat and the district’s nonvoting House member, have pushed for the fence’s removal. Some critics also point to the expense of the fence, which is costing the government $1.9 million a week, a congressional aide said.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) is also among lawmakers who oppose the fence, describing the barrier as “menacing.”
“It sends exactly the opposite of the signal that I think we ought to be sending to American citizens everywhere,” he said to the Wall Street Journal. “I don’t think one needs to assume that you take this thing down and all of a sudden Jan. 6-type events are going to happen all the time.”
The Associated Press reported U.S. Capitol Police officials told congressional leaders the fence should stay in place for months to come, possibly spanning through the summer.