Local Missouri newspaper slams Josh Hawley’s ‘cynical’ and unethical conduct in a blistering editorial

Far-right Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri has been widely condemned for contesting President-elect Joe Biden's electoral college victory on January 6, hours after the U.S. Capitol Building was stormed by a mob of violent insurrectionists. And some of the vehement criticism is coming from the Kansas City Star's editorial board, which argues that Hawley, an attorney, did his part to fire up the insurrectionists and stresses that his "indefensible actions must have consequences."

Hawley, the Star's editorial board argues, "helped lead the charge to try to overturn a free and fair election, echoing President Donald Trump's fabricated claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and offering a fist pump of encouragement to the rioters who stormed our country's Capitol."

"The deadly January 6 insurrection left a stain on our country and put public servants' lives in danger," the Star's editorial board laments. "Five people died, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick. Repercussions ranging from a public reprimand to disbarment should be considered, said Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney from St. Louis who circulated one of the letters seeking sanctions against Hawley."

Hoffman said of Hawley, "The accusations are serious enough to warrant disbarment, but that's not my determination to make." And the Star points out that a group of Kansas City attorneys has "signed a complaint" against the GOP senator. One of them, Hugh O'Donnell, said, "As a fellow attorney, I am ashamed of him."

The Star's editorial board emphasizes that an investigation of Hawley for possible ethics violations must go forward.

"While Hawley is far more focused on his political ambitions than on actually practicing law," the editorial states, "an inquiry into whether Hawley violated rules of professional conduct could force him to answer for his actions….. Hawley's actions were cynical, wrong, politically motivated and incendiary. He has dishonored his office — and his profession. Hawley violated the oath that all lawyers in Missouri swear to support the Constitution, and a formal investigation by the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel should hold him to account."