THE FIRST major report into Jan. 6 provides new and nauseating details of the intelligence failures, miscommunications and security lapses that left the Capitol vulnerable to attack. But it doesn’t break much new ground. The limited scope of the congressional inquiry and the appalling lack of cooperation from key agencies leave many unanswered questions and once again underscore the importance of having an independent commission explore all aspects of that terrible day.
The 127-page report released Tuesday, the product of more than three months of investigation by the Senate Rules and Homeland Security committees, is a damning account of the failures of the Capitol Police and partner agencies to prepare for the “Stop the Steal” protest by supporters of President Donald Trump. “Get violent . . . stop calling this a march, or rally, or a protest. Go there ready for war . . .” was one exhortation posted in an online thread on Jan. 5, one of many that went unheeded by law enforcement authorities. “The attack,” as Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) said, “was quite frankly planned in plain sight.”
If there were any need for further evidence of its fecklessness, the Capitol Police’s response to the report was a statement insisting that law enforcement officials had no way of knowing that the rally would turn into a violent assault.
www.washingtonpost.com/...
Steve Schmidt "We’re now one election away in this country from losing our democracy"
The editorial board for the Boston Globe made the case this week for holding Trump criminally accountable for his obstruction of justice, efforts to overturn his election loss in Georgia and inciting an insurrection Jan. 6 aimed at stopping the certification of Joe Biden's electoral win, arguing that prosecution was the only way to ensure future presidents conducted themselves honorably and lawfully.
"There is only one way left to restore deterrence and convey to future presidents that the rule of law applies to them," the board argued. "The Justice Department must abandon two centuries of tradition by indicting and prosecuting Donald Trump for his conduct in office."
The editors agreed the decision to prosecute a former president for crimes committed in office was a heavy responsibility, but they argued that it was necessary to preserve the rule of law -- and other democracies had successfully charged former leaders.
https://t.co/exIA59VrgR?amp=1
Steve Schmidt warns of his former clients: We are fighting an autocratic movement that includes an eclectic multitude of extremist groups among them fascists, theocrats, white supremacists and conspiracy looms. They are dangerous and they want political power again. This movement teems with menace and violence. It has killed and it will kill again. The pro democracy coalition must win the 24, 28 and 32 elections to break this. It will not be easy. Good night @ProjectLincoln
Trump thrives on destroying people who have been disloyal to him. He is actively trying to tarnish the reputations of Republicans who have not supported him. Look who he hates now: Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Liz Cheney — and the list goes on. His vindictiveness is a far cry from delusion. Who he hates can change instantly, depending on how he perceives the transaction of the moment. McConnell was almost his buddy at one time.
Trump proved he was anti-American by inciting the insurrection against our government on Jan. 6. He does not love democracy and does not care about the will of the people. He wants to be a dictator, pure and simple. Disregarding the Constitution and overthrowing our government are nothing to a man desperate for the continued taste of power, greed and adulation. Nothing about that is a delusion.
Trump is a megalomaniac who thinks he is smarter, richer and stronger than anyone else. Everything he says and does is aimed at fortifying his grandiose and superior persona. He never admits to a mistake. He never acknowledges a loss. He always doubles down on a position. He does not care a whit about the people of this country. Grifting others is his sport. Despite being impeached twice and losing the national election by 7 million votes, Trump marches on with his false self of grandiosity. That is not a delusion — it is his psychic machinery of self-preservation.
www.alternet.org/...
The intensity of the early days of 2020 are gone. The Capitol riots are over. The most egregious Republican lies and conspiracy theories about the presidential election have subsided, to a point. But Donald Trump’s insistence that he’s still the rightful winner of the 2020 contest can still have a hold on the system — so much so that the continued threat of his influence is actually keeping some of his supporters in jail following the 6 January attack on the Capitol.
Multiple federal judges across the country have justified keeping Capitol riot suspects in jail ahead of their trials, given the former president’s continued provocations, according to a legal analysis from The Washington Post.
“The steady drumbeat that inspired defendant to take up arms has not faded away; six months later, the canard that the election was stolen is being repeated daily on major news outlets and from the corridors of power in state and federal government, not to mention the near-daily fulminations of the former President,” one judge wrote, denying bond to a Capitol suspect from Colorado.
www.independent.co.uk/...