Cowboys for Trump leader won’t resign his Otero County post
Griffin denies he called for violence at, took part in Jan. 6 Capitol riot
ALAMOGORDO — Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin has said he will not resign his seat on the Otero County Commission as he awaits trial in connection with the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol.
Griffin made the declaration in response to a news release issued last week by County Commissioners Gerald Matherly and Vickie Marquardt calling for Griffin’s resignation, the Alamogordo Daily
News reported Saturday.
The topic took up more than an hour of the commission’s meeting last week after it was placed on the agenda for discussion. Matherly attempted to have it removed from the agenda, but was overruled. Marquardt defended the letter and reasons for requesting it.
“Starting last June, when you went off 100 percent Cowboys for Trump, I felt like you left the county behind,” said Marquardt, who is in his first year as a commissioner. “I don’t feel like you are earning your paycheck.”
Griffin, who is in his third year as a commissioner, said the news release asking for his resignation violated the New Mexico Open Meetings Act on rolling quorums.
New Mexico Foundation for Open Government Executive Director Melanie Majors said that is probably not the case because news releases are not subject to the regulations in the act and do not need board approval for dissemination to the public.
Griffin also took the time to answer, line by line, the allegations made in the statement, including denying he “called for violence” and was involved in the riots at the Capitol.
Griffin argued that a statement he made while speaking at a rally in Truth or Consequences — “the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat” — was misconstrued as calling for violence against the Democratic Party. He also denied that other statements he made were meant to incite violence.
Griffin also defended his criticism of the playing of the Black National Anthem “Lift Every Voice and Sing” at national sporting events by telling players to “go back to Africa.” He argued the statement was not racist but said the song itself was.
“It was said to those Black NFL football players that were kneeling at our flag and wanting to play something as racist as a Black National Anthem. There’s nothing any more racist than a national anthem that only recognizes people by the color of their skin. What a racist thing that they want to do,” he said.
Griffin was arrested in January and charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and was held in a Washington jail for about three weeks before returning to New Mexico pending trial.
Griffin has denied the federal charges that he knowingly entered barricaded areas of the Capitol grounds with the intent to disrupt government as Congress considered Electoral College results.
Griffin is banned from visiting Washington outside of court proceedings, must surrender his passport and must not possess a firearm.
Paul Sanchez, member of the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, informed the Otero County Commission that a recall lawsuit was filed and Griffin had been served notice of the lawsuit prior to the meeting last week.
Sanchez said it would take “some months” to come to a resolution.