Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) didn’t hold back when he fired a direct shot at Donald Trump, daring the former president to try and retaliate against him. In a no-holds-barred interview with CNN’s Sara Sidner, Kinzinger was asked whether he feared the Trump-controlled Department of Justice might come after him for his role in investigating the January 6th Capitol insurrection. His response was blunt and unapologetic.
“I am absolutely the opposite of concerned about retaliation,” Kinzinger declared without hesitation. “Let’s be clear: My opinion hasn’t changed. Donald Trump is a scared, weak person. And he won the election. Congratulations… But he himself, because I know him, is a trembling, scared man.”
The former lawmaker also made it clear that he wasn’t about to back down to threats or attempts to manufacture criminal charges. “I didn’t do anything illegal,” he said. “So if they want to manufacture something, they won’t have the ability to do it. It’s still a democracy. And I know that.”
Kinzinger, who has become one of Trump’s fiercest Republican critics, called out the former president’s reliance on intimidation and fear tactics, something Trump has used throughout his political career.
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“Any strength he has comes from intimidating people with power he doesn’t have,” Kinzinger said. “I know the power he doesn’t have—and I am not intimidated by it.”
Kinzinger’s words were even sharper when he took to his Substack to expand on his stance. There, he ripped into Trump and his enablers for failing to understand that Kinzinger’s allegiance lies with the Constitution, not a man who has made a mockery of American democracy.
“What Trump and his enablers don’t seem to get is that I’m free from the shackles of political expediency,” Kinzinger wrote. “I didn’t get into this to serve a political cult or bend the knee to anyone. I serve the Constitution and the country I swore an oath to protect—not a man who’s turned our democracy into his personal grievance project.”
Kinzinger’s message to Trump was unmistakable: “Come at me.” He’s not afraid. He’s not backing down.
Watch the exchange below:
