Ousted GOP Lawmaker ‘Excited’ To Become CNN Senior Political Commentator
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) — who was accused of betraying his Republican voter base by repeatedly siding with the Democrats — the party that ultimately redistricted him out of a job — has announced his new career as a CNN senior political commentator.
Kinzinger, one of ten House Republicans to vote in favor of impeaching former President Donald Trump following the January 6 protests, lost his position in the House after Illinois Democrats heavily redistricted the state and eliminated his seat.
The redrawing of the map divided Kinzinger’s 16th district, putting him in a new version of the 3rd district — which has leaned heavily Democrat for decades and was being represented by former Rep. Marie Newman (D-IL) until she lost the Democratic primary in 2022 to now Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL). If Kinzinger had chosen to run for reelection, he would have had to run against Casten, and faced a very likely defeat.
Now, after choosing to retire from the House, Kinzinger has decided to work for CNN — a move that many of his critics predicted he would make.
During an appearance on CNN, the former congressman said that he was “excited” to join the network.
“Happy to join the team @CNN!” Kinzinger wrote in a post responding to a CNN Communications tweet welcoming him to the network.
Kinzinger, who was one of two GOP lawmakers to sit on the January 6 Committee in alongside former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), said that he has “zero regrets” about his decision to side with the Democrats against Trump.
“It’s not that we’re courageous. We’re really not,” he said regarding himself and Cheney, who was ousted from Congress, losing by nearly 40 points to a pro-Trump candidate. “It’s that cowardice is everywhere.”
“I have zero regrets. And I know my kid, I know this, he will be proud to have the last name. And a lot of my colleagues will have kids that’ll be ashamed of them,” Kinzinger added.
Kinzinger has been in Congress since 2011.
Critics responded to his new career decision on Twitter, noting that they had “seen this coming.”
“A traitor, and a sell-out! A two-for… if only someone could have seen this coming,” said YouTuber and lawyer Viva Frei.
“You’re a Democrat operative, so this was expected,” wrote another Twitter user.
Nick Freitas, a Republican member of the Virginia House of Delegates, asserted that Kinzinger had already joined CNN “a long time ago,” but this announcement means that he’s “just getting paid directly now.”
“Like we didn’t see this one coming! You’re such a sellout, Adam,” responded Jack Lombardi II, former Republican House candidate for Illinois.
