To the editor:

In his 1994 US Senate battle with Gov. Jim Hunt, Sen. Jesse Helms made a catchphrase of “Where do you stand, Jim?” US Rep. Dan Bishop’s opponent in 2022 won’t need to ask where Dan stands. Our distinguished representative, who launched his political brand as author of North Carolina’s infamous Bathroom Bill, is basking in the right-wing limelight as a regular guest on the Fox and Newsmax “news” channels, both of which are facing lawsuits for parroting the president’s Big Lie about voter fraud.

Bishop’s latest claim to infamy is his membership in the Sedition Caucus. On Jan. 6, hours after Trump’s fanatical, murderous mob stormed the Capitol to subvert the Constitution and overturn a free and fair presidential election, Dan walked back into the House chamber, stepping over broken glass, splintered wood and bloodstains, to side with the coup. He voted to undermine an election certified by 50 states and upheld by 60 courts.

In a statement that night, Bishop said “Today, we were supposed to debate the electoral certification. A group of individuals with violence in their hearts attempted to stop that debate today. They failed.”

Dan could have said, “We failed.” He and the mob were on the same side. They didn’t want to stop the debate. They wanted to stop the electoral count. Thankfully for our democracy, Dan, his Sedition Caucus buddies and the mob failed.

This shameful episode – the attempt by Dan, his Sedition Caucus and the mob to steal votes – stirred a lot of Republicans into changing their party affiliation. More alarming perhaps for Dan is the Washington Post report that Sedition Caucus members are losing corporate PAC contributors including Marriott, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Amazon, AT&T, Mastercard, Verizon and Dow. These companies are distancing their brands from Dan and his ilk.

A partial list of Dan’s 2020 contributors includes Duke Energy, Atrium Health, Wells Fargo, Hendrick Automotive, Truist Financial, Northwestern Mutual, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (of which Pee Dee Electric and Union Power Cooperative are members), Variety Wholesalers (parent company of

Roses stores), Bank of America, OrthoCarolina, Toyota, Coca-Cola, Nucor, and Charlotte Pipe and Foundry. Perhaps some will become ex-contributors and Dan will become an ex-Congressman.

Now that we know where Dan stands, we’ll make a note of when he stands for re-election: Nov. 8, 2022.

Speed Hallman

Wadesboro