Is Trump going to live at Mar-a-Lago or Guantanamo Bay Prison? He says he wants to live permanently at his Palm Beach club, but that depends on whether he’s convicted of terrorism. He commanded his supporters to go to D.C. to stop politicians from certifying Biden’s presidency. His December 19th commandment was “Be there.”
On January 1st he said the purpose of the planned event was to “StoptheSteal,” a common phrase among his supporters. Trump has been arguing since November that Biden stole the presidency, so “StoptheSteal” is basically saying, “Stop Biden from stealing the presidency.” Therefore, it’s clear Trump summoned his supporters to go to D.C. “at 11:00 A.M. on January 6th” to take the presidency away from Biden. Since Biden won the electoral college and the popular vote legally, Trump commanded his supporters to commit a crime, because it is a crime to take away what belongs to Biden.
Neither Trump nor his supporters respected the law. They sided with him against the law as New Yorker writer Susan Glasser observed:
“I will remember Trump shouting into the cold wind as the clock hit the appointed hour of 1 p.m., urging his supporters to march on the Capitol, egging them on, inciting them with his hatred and grievance. I will remember the Trump flag, not the American flag, hanging off the Capitol balcony, and the fact that the rioters wore Trump’s name on their shirts and hats. And I will remember his video, as those rioters rampaged through the halls of Congress. “We love you,” Trump told them.”
According to 6 USCS § 101, the term terrorism is "any activity that--
(A) involves an act that--
(i) is dangerous to human life or potentially destructive of critical infrastructure or key resources; and
….The terrorists killed a Capitol police officer and physically assaulted many others working at the Capitol.
(ii) is a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State or other subdivision of the United States; and
….The terrorists violated many laws “ranging from local offenses, such as destruction of property, to federal crimes of sedition that can carry penalties of decades in prison”
(B) appears to be intended--
(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;
….Right-wing extremists have repeatedly committed violence during Trump’s reign and he emboldened them
(ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or
….The terrorists intended to intimidate and coerce politicians to stop them from certifying Biden’s win that day.
(iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping."
….The terrorists were guilty of mass destruction of Capitol property, many stated they wanted to kill politicians, and they had zip ties presumably to kidnap politicians.
So, it is 100% certain the siege of the U.S. Capitol was an act of terrorism. “The Washington Post reports that dozens of people on a terrorist watch list — including many white supremacists — were in Washington on the day of the insurrection…. ProPublica reporter A.C. Thompson, who covers right-wing extremism, says of the January 6 riot. “If you looked at the rhetoric online … it was all about revolution, it was all about death to tyrants, it was all about civil war.”
One of the terrorists, McCall Calhoun, wrote on Parler that “as part of the anti-communist counter revolution we’ve got to get serious about stopping them by force of arms;” and after the siege he bragged that “They learned that today when we stormed the Capitol and took it. The word is we’re all coming back armed for war.” Trump supporters essentially saw their invasion as waging a jihad war against infidel politicians who allegedly betrayed their country by certifying Biden instead of Trump. Yet Biden is the people’s choice, so Trump’s invading army sought not only to overpower Capitol politicians but also to overpower the will of the American people.
A Navigator study found that 84% of Americans oppose the invasion of the Capitol. That confirms that Trump’s followers don’t support American values or American law. They are primarily white nationalist extremists. CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein…said the trajectory of Trump's "white nationalist extremism has been very clear" for the last four years, as are the potential costs to US security if it is left unchecked.”
Many people who observered Trump watching his supporters invade the Capitol confirmed that he’s philosophically aligned with their beliefs and encourages, aids and abets them. Brownstein warned that "President Trump has provided an enormous amount of oxygen to this very dangerous ideology.” Amanda Marcotte reported at Salon.com that “Trump refused to do anything to stop the riot because he was loving every minute of it….
Trump refused to take calls from the various congressional members who called for help. They describe a situation where aides and family members pleaded with Trump for hours, yet he refused to listen, and instead was glued to his TV and soaking in every delicious moment of the chaos he caused…
Trump watched with interest, buoyed to see that his supporters were fighting so hard on his behalf, one close adviser said…
He incited an insurrection, and once it was underway, he reacted with excitement and delight. His actions were purposeful and malevolent. He wanted all this to happen and got grumpy at anyone who wanted it to stop…
Nebraska's Republican Sen. Ben Sasse reported that he called the White House during the siege and not only was Trump "delighted" about the melee, but he was also "confused about why other people on his team weren't as excited as he was….
the New York Times reported that Trump only taped a video reluctantly conceding defeat after "he appeared to suddenly realize he could face legal risk for prodding the mob." This was after counsel from his lawyer, Pat Cipollone, and a statement from the D.C. federal prosecutor indicating that charging Trump was a possibility. He obviously didn't mean a word of it and was only trying to save himself from prison…”
One of the worst insults Trump committed was his refusal “to lower the flags for the Capitol police officer who was beaten to death by the mob and only giving in reluctantly after being badgered about it by his aides for days.” Trump’s behavior on January 6th and the days that followed paint a picture of a president who has no respect for America’s people, values, laws, or security. By legal definition he is a terrorist who aids and abets terrorism against the United States. Americans overwhelmingly believe Trump is a terrorist.
A national survey of 1,000 voters documented the words that people most associate with the Capital siege. The first word is “Trump”. The second word is “terrorists”. The third word is “criminal.”
I believe that Guantanamo Bay Prison should be shut down, because I think every criminal should have due process rights. I’m a vegan, meditating, devotee of Jesus, never-supported-any-war type of person. You get the picture. Yet, I strongly believe in the law, and if the terrorists are allowed to get away with their crimes, they will strike again worse than before.
Terrorists who invaded the U.S. Capitol believed they had legal authority to invade, vandalize, and murder, because they were doing what the president wanted. Jenna Ryan’s statement defending her invasion is typical of the groupthink: “I thought I was following my president,” she said. “I thought I was following what we were called to do…He asked us to be there. So I was doing what he asked us to do.”
Removing Trump from office is only the first step. The world is waiting for strong consequences that will send a message to Trump and his supporters that America does not tolerate white supremacist terrorism. This terrible event has brought Americans together by reminding us of our love of our nation, the need to protect America from domestic terrorism, and a clarification of our common values. Although strong legal action is necessary, we are even more protected by one another, knowing that there are hundreds of millions of people like us who are shocked and saddened by the violence against our beloved country.