Name: D.C. riots: Newkirk mayor describes what he saw at U.S. Capitol in social media posts
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D.C. riots: Newkirk mayor describes what he saw at U.S. Capitol in social media posts

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Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You are the owner of this article.You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisD.C. riots: Newkirk mayor describes what he saw at U.S. Capitol in social media postsShare thisCorrection: This story originally included a quote that the New York Times now reports it attributed incorrectly to Brian Hobbs. The story has been corrected.A small-town Oklahoma mayor who was at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday attributed the violence that broke out to "Antifa goons" and called the shooting of one participant a police assassination.Brian Hobbs, the mayor of Newkirk and a former candidate for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, was reported to have been with another Oklahoma man near the top of the Capitol’s west steps about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday when officers in riot gear started moving to clear out the thousands of people who had gathered.The men were interviewed for a report describing the experiences of some of the Donald Trump supporters who got past perimeter barricades around the Capitol.From the Times: “Storming the Capitol was ‘probably not the best thing to do,’ said Eric Dark, 43, a truck driver from Braman, Oklahoma, who was tear-gassed when he got to the top of the steps to the building but never made it inside."He had been standing with Brian Hobbs, the mayor of Newkirk, Oklahoma, near the top of the steps on the western side of the building around 4:30 p.m. when officers in riot gear started moving to clear out the thousands of people who had gathered."’We had enough people, we could have tore that building down brick by brick,’ Dark said.”The Tulsa World was unsuccessful in attempts to reach Hobbs by telephone, including at City Hall in Newkirk, which is 15 miles north of Ponca City in Kay County, or through leaders of the Kay County Republican Party, of which he is an active member.But Hobbs shared many other sentiments and observations in a half-dozen videos he posted publicly on social media before, during and after Wednesday’s occurrences in Washington, D.C.Among them was a video of Hobbs’ vantage point on the Capitol steps, showing people waving flags and singing the national anthem, some from atop scaffolding and bleachers set up for the upcoming presidential inauguration.In one of the lengthiest videos, Hobbs filmed himself in a car, wearing a U.S. Army cavalry Stetson hat on his drive home, railing against Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford and other politicians who did not vote in favor of congressional objections to the certification of Joe Biden’s election.He called Lankford a coward for “backing down” despite his initial support for election result objections.“You acted like you were going to come out and support Trump, and you jumped at the first chance you could to use some Antifa thugs to throw Donald Trump under the bus. You are trash, sir, and you will never get my vote for anything ever again in the state of Oklahoma,” Hobbs said in a video on his Facebook account. “You and the rest of Oklahoma knows this election was stolen.”In his Facebook video comments, Hobbs alternately attributed violence at the Capitol on Wednesday to “Antifa goons” and denied that anything violent had occurred.“It was not violent,” he said in his video. “There was no violence whatsoever. If you consider a bunch of people waving flags, singing the national anthem and carrying giant flags down the road — that is now considered a violent protest? You guys need to pull your heads out of your a—.”He indicated any discussions about violence on Wednesday should include the shooting of riot participant Ashli Babbitt by U.S. Capitol police.“Let’s not even bring up the fact that a United States Air Force veteran was assassinated — an unarmed woman, who happened to be at the doors — shot dead in the neck. So a young woman’s life is cut short, but she made the crime of walking into the `people’s house’ unannounced? You politicians should be ashamed of yourselves. You are disgusting.”Records show Hobbs ran for election to Oklahoma House District 38 in 2018 but lost in the Republican primary runoff. As mayor, Hobbs presides over Newkirk’s three-member City Commission but does not maintain offices in City Hall, officials there said.Newkirk City Manager Ryan Smykil told the Tulsa World on Friday afternoon that City Hall’s phones had been ringing with inquiries about Hobbs’ trip to D.C.“Yes, we have taken phone calls and are aware of the situation. However, the city has no comment,” Smykil said.Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.{{title}}{{summary}}You don't have any notifications.Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.Topics

Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You are the owner of this article.You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisD.C. riots: Newkirk mayor describes what he saw at U.S. Capitol in social media postsShare thisCorrection: This story originally included a quote that the New York...

D.C. riots: Newkirk mayor describes what he saw at U.S. Capitol in social media posts

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