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Based on the latest info I could find, here's why what happened on Jan. 6th was worse than we thought.
It was coordinated. This was not merely a crowd of protestors accidentally incited to storm the Capitol by the intemperance of the President & other speakers at the rally.
It was coordinated. This was not merely a crowd of protestors accidentally incited to storm the Capitol by the intemperance of the President & other speakers at the rally.
Security experts are combing through the online chatter leading up to the rally and have found extremist groups planning violence. People came w/ malice aforethought, thus armored insurrectionists pushing to the front of the crowd, pipe bombs, & so on. https://www.propublica.org/article/capitol-rioters-planned-for-weeks-in-plain-sight-the-police-werent-ready?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter#1040996
But it gets worse. The feds seem to be investigating several Republican members of Congress for connections to the organizers of the rally. (The FBI has warned lawmakers in closed door hearings that they may be shocked with what comes out.)
Indeed, at least one member of Congress, Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) alleges that these GOP members gave some of the insurrectionists tours of the Capitol building on January 5th, the day before. https://www.nj.com/politics/2021/01/members-of-congress-give-reconnaissance-tours-a-day-before-attack-on-us-capitol-rep-mikie-sherrill-says.html
The implication is that these GOP congressmen used the walkthroughs to familiarize the insurrectionists with the building layout so that they could push into the building and confront their colleagues who were opposed to overturning the electoral ballot count.
Remember, Trump specifically told the protestors to march on the Capitol to "cheer on our brave senators," but then saying that they are "probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them because you'll never take back our country with weakness." https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/donald-trump-speech-save-america-rally-transcript-january-6
"You have to show strength, and you have to be strong." He does mention that they should "peacefully and patriotically" confront Congress once, but also throws out a number of inflammatory metaphors like ending the "assault" and "siege," "fighting" and so on.
It is all but certain that Trump coordinated this march beforehand, perhaps w/ the congressmen now under investigation. After all, he spent the first hour or so of the insurrection calling representatives who were in lockdown because of the insurrectionists HE SENT AT THEM.
Indeed, reports have come out about Trump's glee in the early stages of the riot; Ben Sasse (R-NE) used the words "delighted" & "excited." This was a man who was giddy about the success of a plan coming to fruition. https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/533403-sasse-says-trump-was-delighted-and-excited-by-reports-of-capitol-riot
Now, I think it unlikely that Trump or his minions planned the physical violence. I think they expected the crowd to surround the capitol, that some would push inside to confront members of congress in their chambers, and they'd make a scene that would look good on cable news.
But when you play with matches, don't be surprised when you get burned.
When the President tells the Proud Boys to "stand back, and stand by" last year, but then calls on all his supporters to come fight for him in DC on Jan 6, they might take him seriously *and* literally.
When the President tells the Proud Boys to "stand back, and stand by" last year, but then calls on all his supporters to come fight for him in DC on Jan 6, they might take him seriously *and* literally.
When the President retweets & encourages QAnon adherents to think of him as the victim of a sinister conspiracy to destroy America, they might take him seriously *and* literally. He told them to come on Jan. 6th, that it "will be wild." And he was correct. https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2021-01-06/trump-supporters-crowd-into-washington-to-protest-congress-certifying-bidens-victory
And these extremists weren't going to just peacefully stand outside the Capitol and shout encouraging slogans. No, they came loaded for bear. It's hard to think of a non-sinister purpose for carrying zip cuffs around the Senate chambers.
It's pretty clear that they took Trump literally & seriously in regards to Vice President Pence. "Hang Mike Pence" wasn't just hyperbole for some of those in the Capitol building that day.
In sum, it appears that the president & Republican Congressmen conspired to encourage the invasion of the Capitol building by their most radical followers in order to pressure reluctant colleagues, all in an effort to overturn the president's loss in a legitimate election.
That would be criminal conduct by itself, but the insurrection then spun out of control, resulting in five deaths, dozens of serious injuries, millions of dollars in property damage, and a permanent stain on American democracy.
I should note that there are even *more* disturbing reports out there, but I class them as rumors at this point. Still, if they are even partly accurate, it gets worse.
For example, the Capitol Police haven't told us anything about their investigation into a dozen officers for allegedly aiding the insurrectionists. https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/11/politics/capitol-police-officers-suspended-tim-ryan/index.html
Staff of Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) allege that panic buttons were "torn out" *before* the rioters came, which implies inside help. Again, this needs more investigation before I'd move it out of the rumor category, but even the possibility is disturbing. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/01/13/nation/it-was-like-looking-evil-capitol-attack-through-eyes-massachusetts-delegation/
