If you believe Trump’s lies, watch Jan. 6 panel
Anyone who has an opinion about the 2021 insurrection, especially if it’s clinging to Donald Trump’s lies, must watch the Jan. 6 congressional hearings.
It’s a patriotic duty.
The panel’s first session Thursday night previewed the powerful, chilling testimony it has collected about an attempted coup.
It points to a coordinated, sophisticated attack on the U.S. Capitol, where results of the 2020 presidential election would certify President Joe Biden’s victory.
That, ultimately, happened but not before a violent attack on the United States unfolded, the worst since the Sept. 11 attacks. This time, the terrorists were home-grown.
The country owes much to the Jan. 6 panel.
It interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses and collected more than 140,000 records, including video of the rightwing extremist Proud Boys, a group Trump summoned on national television during a presidential debate, asking them to “stand by.”
The panel aired remarkable footage showing coordination between the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, another right-wing extremist group.
We’d previously seen its military-styled formations, or stacks, headed up the U.S. Capitol steps.
The Proud Boys headed to the Capitol before Trump riled up supporters at the Ellipse that infamous day.
The panel laid out a plan that will connect the dots from a politician enraged by potential defeat to a coup attempt.
Some of the testimony was stunning, especially from former Attorney General Bill Barr and Trump’s daughter Ivanka.
Barr, then the nation’s top law enforcement official, used colorful language to say Trump’s claims of a rigged election were unfounded. Ivanka Trump testified she believed Barr.
The events already add up to treason and sedition, culminating with attacks on police and threats against elected leaders.
None was more at risk than Vice President Mike Pence.
Among the other highlights Thursday night:
• Jan. 6 wasn’t spontaneous or unplanned.
• Trump ignored pleas to intervene and stop the mob.
• While describing chaotic scenes of war, Capitol police officer Caroline Edwards testified that officers like her aren’t trained for combat. She recalled slipping on people’s blood.
• Pence led the response against the insurrection. He was, essentially, in charge. His orders to the military and police to intervene were described as direct and unambiguous.
• In some of the most chilling testimony, Trump’s staff said he described the mob as “doing what they should be doing” and that perhaps “our supporters have the right idea. Mike Pence deserves it.” Insurrectionists were chanting, “Hang Mike Pence.”
• Leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers met in a parking garage the day before the Capitol attack.
• U.S. Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and other unidentified Republicans sought presidential pardons from Trump for their roles in the insurrection. Their names are likely to surface.
• Trump led a sprawling seven-part conspiracy to overthrow the government and remain in power.
Watch.
If you’re a patriot, watch. If you care about democracy, watch.
If you think it’s all unfair to Trump, watch.
The panel’s leaders were remarkable Thursday. They were calm, prepared, unrelenting.
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi, is a Black man from a part of the country where slavery and lynching were seen as justified.
U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, a Republican from Wyoming, is a white woman from a famed family of political conservatives who decided to side with her country above her party.
“Tonight,” she said, in one of the most stirring lines, “I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”
It has been a difficult couple of weeks. The nation has been reeling from one unspeakable piece of breaking news after another.
But on Thursday night, two leaders gave us hope.
They’re patriots who respect the rule of law. More importantly, they’re holding the line against all those who believe they’re above it.