Amid Capitol attack, Andy Barr got one thing right and a whole lot more wrong

For once, let’s give U.S. Rep. Andy Barr credit for doing the right thing: he voted to not challenge the Electoral College results that made former Vice President Joe Biden president.

Of course, he couldn’t leave well enough alone. He just had to say something stupid — actually, a lot of stupid things.

“I fully share those frustrations about the abuses and irregularities that occurred and undermined confidence in our democracy, but the 12th Amendment gives Congress a very limited role in this, and that’s a good thing,” Barr told the Anderson News on Thursday in explaining his vote.

This comment came one day after some of those people also frustrated by the “abuses and irregularities” stormed the nation’s capitol, killing a police officer and injuring dozens of others. One rioter was shot dead by police and three others died of other causes.

As the Capitol was being defiled, Barr sat across the street in his Raymond Building office tweeting out a statement that the “events” at the Capitol were “tragic, outrageous and devastating.”

Event? There was no specific condemnation of the rioters or President Trump for inciting violence at the same rally where Rudy Giuliani called for “trial by combat” and Don Jr. warned Trump opponents that “we are coming for you.”

Instead, he said later in the Anderson News interview, “Some of the president’s language was regrettable.”

Regrettable? This from the guy who was “outraged” that Twitter banned Trump for his false and inflammatory tweets that sparked the deadly riot.

Apparently, Barr agrees with Trump and the insurrectionists because he demanded in the interview that a commission be created to stop “rogue secretaries of states and liberal courts from re-writing state laws at the last minute.”

He also accused the media, in a statement defending his vote, of ignoring tons of evidence in affidavits, witness statements, video tapes and press reports that support allegations of voter fraud and irregularities.

Barr must have missed his law school class where they taught that evidence has to have some basis in fact and in the law.

Let’s do the math for Andy.

Start with 1-for-62. Trump and his “elite” legal teams have filed 62 suits in state and federal courts – including two at the U.S. Supreme Court — and have lost all but one, according to USA Today.

Those decisions were made by judges of all political stripes, including Trump appointed ones. Here’s a highlights reel of their decisions:

“Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here,” Judge Stephanos Bibas, wrote in a Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in the Pennsylvania election.

“This Court has allowed plaintiff the chance to make his case and he has lost on the merits,” federal District Judge Brett H. Ludwig, wrote about the Wisconsin election.

“Allegations that find favor in the public sphere of gossip and innuendo cannot be a substitute for earnest pleadings and procedure in federal court.” District Court Judge Diane J. Humetewa wrote about Arizona.

Here are some other numbers to consider.

▪ All 50 state legislatures certified the election without objection from top election officials.

▪ Sixteen assistant U.S. attorneys wrote that they had not seen evidence of any substantial anomalies in the election. U.S. Attorney William Barr also said there was no widespread fraud.

▪ Ten experts consulting for the federal Cybersecurity Agency concluded the election was “the most secure in American history.”

▪ Six. That’s the number of elections Trump has claimed were rigged since 2012, including the 2016 Iowa caucus he lost, according to USA Today. “Ted Cruz didn’t win Iowa,” Trump said then, “he stole it.” Oh, the irony.

At least Barr isn’t as bad as fellow Republicans Sen. Rand Paul, who said the election was “stolen,” and Rep. Hal Rogers, who disgustingly voted against counting the electoral votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania.

That’s a pretty low bar.

John Winn Miller of Lexington is a retired journalist, indie movie producer and internet entrepreneur.