Every week that goes by makes it harder and harder for anyone with any shred of shame to identify as Republican. Of course, lifelong conservative beliefs aren’t going to evaporate overnight, but the GOP no longer serves any of the ideals it once purported to. It’s morphed completely into the party of Trump, and the only thing it stands for now is the president’s corruption and nascent authoritarianism. Anyone who remains is doing so for purely tribal reasons.
There seems to be a clear distinction now between the two types of Republican politicians. There are those who are just as self-serving and power-hungry as the leader of their party, without principle or conscience, and then there are those who simply lack the courage to stand up to their own party.
Republican congressional Mark Harris for North Carolina’s 9th District, who has been at the heart of election fraud allegations, would seem to fit squarely within the former category of Republicans, but a new incident proves that he also belongs partly in the latter, insofar as he is clearly a man without courage.
Joe Bruno of WSOCTV reports via Twitter that Mark Harris was confronted by the media yesterday and fled down a fire exit staircase. As he escaped the building, the fire alarm triggered.
The media then caught up to him only for him to “sprint” across the street to a church parking lot. Such behavior shows that not only does Harris lack the fortitude to serve in government, but he also lacks the basic spine to confront his critics face to face.
To avoid the media, Mark Harris ran down a fire exit staircase. A man tried to prevent us from following but we still did. The alarm went off as he ran out. When media caught up he sprinted across the street to the First Baptist Church of Charlotte's parking lot #NC09 @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/vDFca16EYx
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) January 8, 2019
Not only is it a fire exit, from here Harris entered the door locks you inside the staircase. @TerranceFOX46 got trapped inside while trying to follow Harris. We just let him out #NC09 @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/bJPNDBqjXq
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) January 8, 2019
As if the alarm didn't give it away, Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center security officers confirm Harris left through the emergency fire exit to avoid talking to the media #NC09 @wsoctv
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) January 8, 2019
Harris later offered a truly pathetic excuse on Twitter, claiming that he just had to get away in time to see a football kickoff. Why exactly that necessitated outright sprinting, Harris failed to explain. His excuse is laughable at face value and sounds exactly like a man trying to justify spineless behavior after the fact. That this is the best he could come up with speaks volumes about him.
Hey man,
Sorry I missed you guys tonight. I had to get to the kickoff of the #NationalChampionship game. We’ll have plenty to talk about in the days ahead.#GoTigers https://t.co/ahd48d1g6I
— Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNC9) January 8, 2019
The results from Harris’s election against Democratic opponent Dan McCready have been riddled with scandal, with allegations of election fraud being leveled against the Republican. Fittingly, McCready, Harris’s Democratic challenger ended up getting the last word this time.
Mark Harris can run from the media, but he can’t hide from the truth. The people deserve answers. https://t.co/gU56PpWL4c
— Dan McCready for NC (@McCreadyForNC) January 8, 2019
