Opera singer is charged with Capitol Hill assault

HR says:

You are correct, Paul L. This is part of a piece I wrote the day after the attempted insurrection. Since then, even more Republicans have jumped on board with the Big Lie.

Immediately preceding the Capitol riot, in a misguided attempt to curry favor with the occupant and his followers, a group of lawmakers started what they thought would be a civilized insurrection. They thought they could control the Frankenstein they helped to create. They thought they could grandstand, knowing their objections were futile.

As lawmakers should have known, there’s no such thing as a “pretend” coup. Republicans who joined in the attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters are guilty of sedition. Why did they all stand and proudly identify themselves for the cameras? Just like the occupant and the rioters, they didn’t hide because they were certain they wouldn’t be prosecuted. These are the people we chose to represent us. This is us.

It’s worth repeating: numerous elected officials traded our democracy for the approval of the very people set to invade and loot our Capitol. Our representatives were willing to resist the peaceful transfer of power to appease a vocal minority of people who believed a lie. Those Republicans are complicit in this conspiracy, as is the occupant and the terrorists who blindly worship him. This is us.

The threat to our democracy was on plain view, once again. I’m no longer shocked at the sight of what should be a very disturbing juxtaposition: American flags, next to Confederate flags, next to flags with the name of the occupant. Every person in that group believes they are the real patriots. They’re convinced they’ve been wronged, because the occupant and other nefarious characters have told them the election was stolen.

The menacing white-supremacist mob, confidently posing for pictures and desecrating the offices and halls of Congress, was emboldened by their leader. He, in turn, was enabled by Republican lawmakers. The domestic terrorists didn’t hide their crimes because they were not afraid, nor are they an aberration.

We need to understand that the rioters, which most of us view with scorn and derision, believe they are revolutionaries, entitled to invade the Capitol in self-righteous indignation. Not surprisingly, the occupant said they were very special people and that we loved them.

Although they’re a minority, we saw the amount of damage that occurred with the aid and encouragement of powerful people. Even more troubling than the property damage is the wound they and their co-conspirators inflicted on our republic.

Of course, not all Republicans condone such lawlessness – most are quickly trying to distance themselves from it – , but there was a large group of public officials who were completely onboard with the attempted government takeover. Once the terrorists breached the Capitol building, it was clear that the Republicans, who had just done their part to support an uprising, were afraid of the people with whom they were aligned.

The violence that numerous Republicans had accepted and condoned on previous occasions was now too close for comfort. Suddenly, Kelly Loeffler, Republican Senator from Georgia, who had cozied up to white supremacists, wasn’t so keen on being part of the insurrection.

That scene will be forever etched in my memory: law enforcement, behind a furniture barricade, guns drawn, broken glass. Lawmakers, staff, and reporters hiding and crouching on the floor of our Capitol. Their fear was palpable.

After the invasion, some lawmakers tried to repudiate the actions of the terrorists, but it was too late. Irreparable damage was done. It appeared architects of the plan didn’t anticipate the consequences of the unrest they fomented, because they were lying to themselves about what they had in common with the terrorists: a willingness to destroy our democratic traditions and institutions.

Ben Sasse is one of the few Republicans who has occasionally had the courage to stand up to the occupant. However, his belief that we’re “not that” is precisely what dooms us to continually “be that.” Simply declaring, “that’s not who we are,” will not solve anything. The occupant, lawmakers, police, insurgents are us. They are not separate from each other, and we cannot separate ourselves from them or the tragedy we saw unfold at our nation’s Capitol.

If we are to move forward as a society, we must acknowledge and examine the dark side of our collective psyche. As long as we don’t recognize the existence of our shadow, it will continue to run the show. The attitude that “this is the greatest country in the world” should be challenged. Calling ourselves “the greatest” is not only arrogant and ill-informed, but it’s totally inaccurate, as proven by yesterday’s events.

There is no “best” or “greatest” country. The United States is a country “in progress.” There can be no honest reckoning with our ugly underbelly if we continue to separate ourselves from each other and to deny the existence of our dark side, individually, and as a society.

We have to ask ourselves, who are these people, and why do they think it’s acceptable to overthrow our democracy?

Why have we allowed public servants to amplify conspiracy theories? Why do we tolerate the dangerous and cynical practice of manipulating uneducated people for votes?

Why is there only one Republican (Senator Romney of Utah) who is demanding that his colleagues tell the American people the truth? Are lawmakers so fearful of conflict that they will continue to ignore the unethical behavior of their colleagues?

This is not the first instance of white-supremacists being coddled by law enforcement. Do Capitol Police officers know of the existence of white supremacists in their ranks?

Do Republicans still get to claim they’re the party of law and order? Will Josh Hawley, the Republican senator from Missouri who spearheaded the revolt in Congress, be held to account for his participation in an attempted coup? Does the fact that he raised funds during the insurrection concern anyone?

According to Senator Sasse, “lies have consequences.” He blamed the occupant for the riot, which he said was inevitable. But it was only inevitable because he and other Republicans enabled the occupant for four years. He and his colleagues in Congress refused to hold the occupant accountable for any of his transgressions.
Senator Sasse and other Republicans think they’re not the same as Ted Cruz, who thinks he’s not the same as the insurgent wearing the animal skin.

They’re wrong. We’re all connected and all responsible for one another. There is a malignant sickness coursing through the veins of our society. We need to be honest about how widespread it is, from the occupant, to elected officials, to misinformation outlets, to the people responsible for protecting the Capitol, to the rioters who besieged and looted it.

Too many people in power have allowed the cancer to fester and grow. I don’t claim to know the solution. But denying that “those people” are “us” is delusional. Distancing ourselves from the people who make us uncomfortable is not the answer.

The elected officials who gave a standing ovation to fellow seditionists may look more respectable than the domestic terrorists, but they’re the same. Those lawmakers are as responsible as the occupant for the violent riot that has shaken us to our core.