Kinzinger Says He Thought About Shooting Capitol Rioters, Felt a ‘Real Sense of Evil’ on Jan. 6

Republican Rep. 👤Adam Kinzinger of Illinois said in a recent interview that he was armed and willing to shoot rioters during the Jan. 6 🏛️Capitol incursion.

“I knew there was going to be violence. I didn’t necessarily know they were going to sack the Capitol, but I knew there was going to be violence,” Kinzinger told Rolling Stone.

Kinzinger claimed he had warned House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of coming violence, but that McCarthy had been “very dismissive” of him.

The congressman said he told his staff to stay home on Jan. 6 but added that it was “kind of a normal morning.”

“I was watching speech and it was crazy, like usual. I remember seeing Jr. say, ‘This is now Trump’s party.’ And I’m like, well, that’s creepy. And then Trump says, ‘I’m going to go with you to the Capitol.’ I’m like, ‘Man, this is bad,’” Kinzinger said.

“So I went down for the opening of the certification. And then I left pretty much when the proceedings started, and then spent basically the next six hours in my office, hunkered down, with my gun out, prepared to defend against my own party.”

Asked if he was “genuinely scared” on Jan. 6, Kinzinger responded, “Yeah.”

“I’d say maybe it’s around 2:30 p.m., and there was a moment where I was like, ‘Man, there’s a real sense of evil.’ I can’t explain it any further than that. And I’m not one of these guys that feels evil a lot,” he said.