I am watching the news out of Washington about the thugs who have taken over the Capitol. And I keep hearing that there is still hardly any law enforcement trying to restore order. And we all know that if leftie or BLM protesters had done this, they’d be in jail already.
This is what comes of years of winking at right-wing terrorism. This is what comes of years not holding the Right responsible for bombing abortion clincis and murdering abortion doctors. This is what comes of letting armed thugs storm into statehouses and call it “exercising their rights.”
Right now I’m hearing some guy on the teevee downplaying the severity of what’s happening. It’s a “nuisance,” he says. He doesn’t think it’s a big enough deal to demand immediate deployment of National Guard.
This is bleeping insurrection. And if these thugs are just allowed to go home in a day or two, there will be more of it.
The DC National Guard answers directly–and only–to the President (https://dc.ng.mil/About-Us/), so we don't want them activated under these circumstances. I don't know whether Guard units from Virginia/Maryland/Delaware/Pennsylvania would be trustworthy.
Stupid people. If it was a dog, i would stop feeding it.
I have tried and tried to understand this cult. What do they want? I look in the mirror and it is ugly.
what do they want? Are they hungry? Are they afraid? Are they watching the country disappear?
What do they want?
The most privileged people in the history of humankind want more privilege.
They also want the privilege of being the victim to monopolize all privilege.
I grew up in a working class town in the rust belt. I went back there in 2016 for a family reunion, just as Trump was flying in for a rally. Hillary couldn't be bothered. After the Nov 2016 election, PBS NewsHour spent an hour interviewing people there, trying to figure out what happened – my town was a Democratic bastion for generations.
These people want "America to Be Great Again" – in other words, the good old days, when working people could have a decent life. Nobody else listened to them, so they took a chance on Trump.
What you're seeing is people who have been forgotten, even abandoned. Their reasoning is: if we can't have a nice life, we will make it impossible for the rest of you. Essentially the mob with the pitchforks, who bought the propaganda, and who are beyond thinking critically.
I was wondering what would be a bridge too far for Republicans.
Trump had campaign folk affect foreign policy, illegally, with the Russians. His campaign was so stupid they thought it was cool to try to obtain help from the Russian government. One was so stupid, he wanted to walk into the Russian embassy, without any records being kept (unless he chose to share them) nor any oversight from State or any intelligence agency.
That wasn't enough. The insane, petty corruption wasn't enough. The Mueller report wasn't enough. Siccing foreign governments on political enemies wasn't enough, nor was covering it up. 300+ thousand *dead* wasn't enough.
And now, this totally predictable occurrence – is that going to be enough? And I honestly don't know. But I take some small amount of hope in how the Republicans know they can always make something blow over, by lying about it until people get bored. I suspect some of them will say very stupid things over the next few days, attempting damage control. I suspect they'll try to say that violence is entirely the fault of the protestors, not Trump.
And I suspect, and hope, it won't work.
It's obviously time for a personnel review in law enforcement. The contrast between the kid gloves treatment of these vandals and the gratuitous violence directed at the BLM protestors is profound, and can only be attributed tobias on the part of LEOs. If you can't enforce the law, repeat after me"you want fries with that?"
Also, too, before anyone jumps in with dangerous job/stress excuses: I was a commercial fisherman(dragger) for 22 years and my chances of getting killed on the job were 7 times greater than that of police (look it up, only Loggers have worse odds). If you have any examples of either of our professions pulling this poor me shit, I'd appreciate seeing it.
I'm not sure if there was a "plan." It might be that their objective was to seize the EC ballots themselves. That didn't happen – the ballots were saved. It may be that they wanted to take hostages. That didn't happen. (They got Pelosi and Pence out first.) It's possible they thought they would be allowed to "keep" the building. Why were they allowed to take it?
It's outrageous that the DC Police were so unprepared as to allow a mob to overrun security when the threat was predicted, known, and advertised from the POTUS on down. Was it deliberate that the cops stepped aside? To what end? They're in hot water up to their necks now with Congress.
Democrats have the majority this month and hard questions are gonna be asked in Congress. I predict the resignation of the DC Chief of Police but that won't prevent him from being called before the Oversight Committee. Some Republican members of the House participated in barricading the doors to the House chamber. The madness of a mob had to be real at that moment. Enough to step back from the brink?
One thing seems certain. There's gonna be a split between the Trump mob and their minions in Congress and sane legislators opposed to the chaos. Even McConnell may be among the sane. If this concludes without loss of life, it may work to the good.
Kevin McCarthy and Marco Rubio have both denounced the actions of the MAGA insurrectionists. That's kind of rich considering they worked so hard to create this monster.
It's stomach turning to see the halls of government defiled by a bunch of morons donning MAGA hats and draped in Trump flags. The most offensive outrage was hearing that they tore down the American flag and replaced it with a Trump flag. I'm not one who generally gets overworked in defending our flag because the love and value I place in our flag is in a realm where its meaning to me is impervious to degradations, but because the location of our flag within our nation's capitol elevates it in my mind to a sacred symbol of what America stands for, and to have it egregiously disrespected by replacing it with a Trump flag is the ultimate outrage.
Hawley and Cruz are fund raising off of this. New definition of craven.
Entirely predictable and expected. How many had guns? How many will come back with guns.
^This. Kansas City Star editorial, "Hawley Has Blood on His Hands". Ambitious, highly educated, highly privileged clowns – who utterly lack principles.
Krugman used the word feral in reference to the new Republican tendency. It sure looked like a feral crowd today, although I am not sure they showed signs of prior domestication in their actions today. Oh the banners and flags, it has become almost a fetish for the lot of them. A lot of snake flags and a lot of Trump flags, but the flag that would make sense would have Trumps head on the body of a snake. I saw none of those. This feral group slithered behind their leader, in feral loyalty, while he engaged in a fantasy that he was a victim not a loser. They need a flag that is a true symbol about what they seem to stand for which is uncivilized, nefarious allegiance to a delusional fantasy.
Please don't insult the snakes! More appropriate would be Trump's head on the devil.
Sure, anything serpentine is fine by me, we need to see what the graphics types come up with.
The key thing for me is: who is going to be held accountable for this, and in what manner. I've read everything from: impeachment, to 25th amendment, to firing the Capitol Police Chief. Because if nobody is punished, it's going to happen again. Next time the thugs will be a lot more organized.
Have also read there's a Russian oligarch's plane, idling at the Palm Beach airport (or thereabouts). Could be somebody's imagination, but it would not surprise me at all if Trump flees to the Ukraine or Russia.
Nobody wants Trump.
January 6th, 2021, is another "day which will live in infamy."
Remind me of again, my KKKonservative/RepubliKKKLAN friends, of how we never, not ever, never have to worry not domestic white terrorists from the right, but rather from the CommieSocialiPinkoBlackLivesMatterGayTransToo libtards mobs.
So those were lefties attacking OUR Capitol Building?!?
I'm confused.
As a long-time protester, a PEACEFUL protester, my fellow PEACEFUL protesters and I wonder where were what WE faced for some of our PEACEFUL protests: Where were the well-armed cops on horsies swinging skull and bone cracking clubs? Where were the attack dogs? Where were the crowds gassed to submission? Where where the hordes of wounded people being escorted to a waiting police vehicles for arrest and trial?
Where?
Everything was peaceful. From the actual invasion of OUR building (where were the all of the fucking cops?!?), to the dispersal? Peaceful. No people dragged away bloody.
Why? How?
What?
Oh, they were WHITE!!!
Well, why didn't you say that in the first place?!?
In the words of the late, great Emily Litella: "Neeeeeeeeeeeeever mind…"
I don't believe everything I read. This needs a full hearing in Congress but it looks like Pence called out the National Guard because Trump refused to. I want to see the documents and chronology but here's some of the questions that need answers.
WHY was the US Capitol Building left without a police staff in riot gear when there was ample warning of the threat of violence? (Yes, that question presumes that a) there wasn't a police staff in readiness and b) there was warning. Both of those need to be probed with emphasis on WHO made the decisions.)
How long was the delay between when the first protesters breached the barricades and there was a serious boost in police staff in riot gear?
Did Capitol police not resist the advance of trespassers or assist in their advance?
What were the injuries to Capitol Police? When and where did those injuries occur?
What security footage exists inside and outside the Capitol Building (for inspection by Congressional investigators. ALL of it!)
Did Trump ignore calls for the National Guard? Who called for help? When? To who? What was the response? EXACT timeline! Were there standing orders in place in advance to prevent reinforcements from getting to the Capitol Building? Who issued those orders?
If elements of a conspiracy emerge, What phone records exist between the major players?
Obviously, I have my opinions, but I want the facts. If some folks participated in a coup attempt, I want them in jail.
In 2 weeks, adults will be in charge. There is lots of soon-to-be-vacated cage space available near the border for these animals.
(yes, hyperbolic irony intended)
This was stunning, but it was more cosplay than "insurrection". If/when these crazies get serious, they will shoot people (Kenosha…), not just parade around looking silly.
Still, the fact that they able (or allowed?) to storm the CAPITOL OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and raid offices including the Speaker of the House speaks volumes about what's happened to this country.
I fear the GOP will get away with "condemning" this and pretending that Trump – and not the Republican Party – is responsible for this. The GOP (and their primary propaganda arm, FOX) has been brewing this toxic stew for decades. Trump just took the lid off the pot & spilled it all over our country.
It's gonna take a while to clean up the mess. Getting Trump out is just a start. How can the GOP be held accountable for building the infrastructure which led to this?
Two sources (related to me) have defended what happened yesterday in terms of the lefties caused all the damage the past year, rioting, and "burning buildings to the ground." My *sense* was that the righties joined in to subvert BLM demonstrations, and burn things. There were hints–the guy the first night of demonstrations with the umbrella, breaking the store window and definitely encouraging rioting (who turned out to be right affiliated, not left), reports of radio conversations from a convoy of Proud Boys headed up the coast to the Portland events But try as I might, it was never possible to pin the amount of their playing at joining and then rioting they were doing. The press simply was not reporting it. (as in who was arrested for what)
I ex[ect a repeat for yesterday, sorry to say.
I hope I am wrong. The way I see it, this is just a warm-up for 2024.
Republicans blatantly steal the 2024 presidential election.
Democrats complain & protest.
Republicans & corporate media use this event to say that Democrats need to just accept the results, as republicans did in 2020.