Enough Is Enough: When GOP “Loyalty” Turns Into Dangerous Extremism

Meet John Gillette, R-Kingman. On September 25, 2025, he took to social media and posted that Pramila Jayapal, a Democratic congresswoman, should be tried, convicted and hanged. Why? Because she dared to speak about protest rights and harsh-government policy under the Trump banner. This isn’t hyperbole—the comment is literal. “Until people like this, that advocate for the overthrow of the American government are tried convicted and hanged.. it will continue,” Gillette wrote.

Let’s pause. A sitting member of the Arizona House calls for the execution of a House member of the U.S. Congress. This is not heated rhetoric. This is threat-level behavior. By any conservative standard of law, order and public decency, this should be disqualifying.

But there’s more. When you look at Gillette’s background, the red flags are overwhelmingly obvious.

Before he arrived in Arizona politics, Gillette served for years as a deputy sheriff in Sangamon County, Illinois—a stint documented to include dozens of complaints: allegations of battery, sexual assault and excessive force dating back to the 1990s and 2000s. So here we have a lawmaker with a history of serious misconduct, now openly advocating for extra-judicial executions of political opponents. This isn’t marginal. It’s existential for the Republican brand.

And yet, what happens? A tidal wave of calls for discipline? Nope. The Republican leadership in the Arizona House has stalled. Ethics complaints were filed, advocacy groups demanded action, yet no meaningful accountability has followed.

Let me be crystal: We conservatives cannot let ourselves look like we condone this. Our movement is built on the idea that law matters, that rights are protected, that our institutions are navigated rather than undermined. Gillette’s statement isn’t a political misstep, it’s a violent threat and our failure to respond makes us complicit.

If you’re reading this and saying “Well, politics is rough,” then let me tell you: no. Politics is tough, but it’s not lawless. Advocacy is fierce, but it’s not violent. Respect for process is not optional. If our rising-stars display this kind of behavioral toxicity, we need new rising-stars.

Republicans, this is a wake-up call. Speak out. Enforce standards. Clean house. Because when our own start calling for execution, using bigoted language like “f***ing savages” aimed at Muslim Americans, and have detailed records of misconduct, we don’t just look bad. We become dangerous.

We’re better than this. If you claim to believe in America, its laws, its freedoms, its institutions, then you must reject this behavior clearly, publicly and permanently. Reform doesn’t mean covering it up. It means elevating accountability. Because the stakes aren’t just one politician. They’re our entire credibility.