January 6 Hearings Live

[lpetrich]

Melania Trump had an ‘odd’ change of heart about the election after Jan. 6: former chief of staff - Raw Story - Celebrating 17 Years of Independent Journalism

While many Republican officials were horrified on that day, over time their opinions have changed. One of those people is Mrs. Trump, according to Grisham.

"The East Wing was telecommuting completely for COVID," Grisham remembered from that day. "So, I was not physically in the White House. As we all know, though, [former President Donald Trump] was surrounded by some extremists who were telling him that the election had been stolen. I believe Peter Navarro just laid out some wacky plan they had, and they kept on telling him that information. So, he believed it was stolen."

...
In the moment of Jan. 6, Grisham said, "she was very focused on moving her family out. Towards the end, she told me she felt something bad happened. That wasn't anything like what she would normally say. She was very pragmatic. She was always the one to -- she put out the first statement with Charlottesville."

It was only after some time that Grisham said her viewpoint evolved.

 

[lpetrich]

'Furious' Trump complained to friends about 1/6 anniversary coverage while watching at Mar-a-Lago: report - Raw Story - Celebrating 17 Years of Independent Journalism

According to a report from Newsweek's Bill Powell, Donald Trump spent the day of the anniversary of the Jan 6th insurrection obsessively watching TV coverage of President Joe Biden's speech -- as well as other proceedings about the events of that day -- and bitterly complained about what he was seeing on the screen to friends.

...
The former president was supposed to hold a press conference on Thursday as the new president was speaking but that called off on the advice of family and friends less than 48 hours before, leaving him on the sidelines.

Although the former president fired off a series of statements lashing out left and right, he reportedly fumed over the somber media coverage while sitting in at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Noting
Trump Spent Jan. 6 Anniversary Watching Cable News and Fuming

Doesn't anyone close to him ever say "Please, Donald, you are making yourself seem like some big baby"?

This reminds me of
Trump Twitter Archive - Search for Cortez (AOC)

Aug 16th 2019 - 6:43:04 PM EST
Like it or not, Tlaib and Omar are fast becoming the face of the Democrat Party. Cortez (AOC) is fuming, not happy about this!

AOC responded with a tears-of-laughter emoji.

Seems to me that Trump was projecting his narcissism onto AOC.

 

[SLD]

Founder of Oath Keepers charged with seditious conspiracy

I find this statement to be key:

Rhodes did not enter the Capitol building on Jan. 6 but is accused of helping put into motion the violence that disrupted the certification of the vote.

Message to other participants who did not enter.

And Thursday night on Tucker Carlson's show? His very special guest was one of the 11 charged with seditious conspiracy. Did Tucker ask hard questions? Did he challenge his guest?

Nope. He fawned over him, led with his veteran status (FYI, Tim McVeigh was a veteran, too), and allowed the guy to play a whole deck of victim cards. Did you know he's a Christian? Did you know his life has been upended? Did you know he's on disability? He couldn't possibly have been involved in a plot to overthrow the government! He loves Jesus!

You mean he lives off the government dole? He’s a welfare king?

I knew a Trump supporter like that. The irony was just stunning. They have this mentality that they are one of the few actually deserving government benefits. Trump is only complaining about those others (I.e. the brown ones). Their obtuseness was just utterly stunning to me.

But there’s a lesson in that: people don’t vote their economic interest. Democrats don’t seem to understand that.

 

[SLD]

Barbara F Walter on Twitter: "If you didn't catch it live, I joined @amanpour on @CNN to discuss what scholars have learned from civil wars around the world and what this is telling us about our own country and our risks of violence. (link)" / Twitter
noting
Civil War in America: Can it happen again? - CNN Video
Christiane Amanpour:

Writer Fintan O'Toole and Barbara F. Walter, author of "How Civil Wars Start," discuss America's risk of sliding into a modern-day civil war.

BW said that many Americans have the stereotype of their 1861-65 Civil War, with two large armies fighting each other, like wars between separate nations. But what happens nowadays is much more decentralized, much less organized, with lots of factions and militias fighting each other, often using guerrilla warfare and terrorism.

The most important factor was "anocracy", halfway between democracy and authoritarianism. The next one whether the nation was divided into ethnic, religious, or racial factions that try to exclude others from power. She then said that the US has both factors.

Fintan O'Toole notes that the US far right already thinks that the US is in a civil war. He notes that a coming civil war may be a self-fulfilling prophecy, that people concerned about a possible civil war may end up preparing for that sort of thing and end up starting one. They may then say that they must attack before they become attacked.

Then a mention of the issue of the Jan-6 investigations not doing much about those at the top.

Who starts civil wars? The more extreme people. They recruit more moderate people with talk of how dangerous the other side is. Like making a big bogeyman out of Antifa. Or claiming that the Jan 6 attacks were due to villains like the FBI and the Deep State and Antifa.

BW then talked about social media and how it gets viewers by showing its users lots of outrages. Then how some people believe that the Jan 6 attackers were patriots who were trying to save America. FOT agreed, and he said that in such people's minds, the US is a nation of white people where all others are in a subordinate position, and that legitimate democracy is only white-people democracy.

FOT then says that Presidet Joe Biden ought to fight his bipartisan, consensus inclinations and recognize that much of the nation does not believe in democracy.

BW suggests that we increase checks and balances on the Presidency, that the President has become more and more powerful. I agree, because that seems like going in the direction of Caesarism, of someone in the system making himself an autocrat. Sort of like what Donald Trump tried to do. The highest-rated democracies all have parliamentary systems, where the legislature runs the executive branch of government. Furthermore, some research indicates that the strength of a legislature is positively correlated with the strength of democracy. So a possible fix is to downgrade the Presidency, and have Congress take over much of the Cabinet.

BW noted Arthur Schlesinger Jr. writing about "the imperial presidency". He wrote about Richard Nixon, and BW thinks that that is an even better description of Trump's Presidency.

I think too many of these people fail to recognize a basic fact. Why should people support democracy if it doesn’t do anything for them? That may seem odd, but for so many democratic leaders, they seem to default to a notion that people will always support a democracy. But they won’t if it’s not a real democracy that can give them prosperity and peace. Our system is controlled by an elite that manipulates the voters. We’re ruled by lobbyists who control politicIans with money. The fundamental problem is growing income inequality. The failure to ensure that everyone has a stake in the system has led to many who no longer care to support the system and want to see it all come crashing down. It’s not that they have a simple love of fascism, it’s just that they’re more anarchists.

 

[Keith&Co.]

Doesn't anyone close to him ever say "Please, Donald, you are making yourself seem like some big baby"?

Yes. Remember the high turn-over of White House personnel?
The way to rise in Trump's orbit...hell, the way to STAY in Trump's orbit is to be sure he wants to hear what you tell him.

 

[TV and credit cards]

Did you know he's a Christian?

Chances are good the people charging him are, too.

Did you know his life has been upended?

Upended, huh? How about those cops who committed suicide because of that day? Their lives, their families'?

Did you know he's on disability?

So were some of the congresspeople that feared for their lives that day.

Speaking as a decorated vet, myself, who took the same oath he did to defend the Constitution, i implore you to recall that oath, keep that oath, and cooperate with the prosecution. Then fuck off to prison.

Well they are. Hence the name, Oath Keepers. They will support and defend the Constitution made by white men, for white men. It is their duty to set this country right. No matter how many say they are wrong. They will not, they must not be deterred. They know the way things are suppose to be in this great land.
One day they will have their ‘right man’ in office. Trump has shown himself to not be up to the task. A vacuum is forming. Many will attempt to fill it. But one man, a strong man, a man of resolve will be waiting for the patriots to select him.


Anyways, what I’m hoping is in the DoJ bringing charges, serious charges on those not at the capitol, it turns up the heat on those on the inside who helped coordinate, advise, and encourage.

Founder of Oath Keepers charged with seditious conspiracy

I find this statement to be key:

Rhodes did not enter the Capitol building on Jan. 6 but is accused of helping put into motion the violence that disrupted the certification of the vote.

Message to other participants who did not enter.

And Thursday night on Tucker Carlson's show? His very special guest was one of the 11 charged with seditious conspiracy. Did Tucker ask hard questions? Did he challenge his guest?

Nope. He fawned over him, led with his veteran status (FYI, Tim McVeigh was a veteran, too), and allowed the guy to play a whole deck of victim cards. Did you know he's a Christian? Did you know his life has been upended? Did you know he's on disability? He couldn't possibly have been involved in a plot to overthrow the government! He loves Jesus!

You mean he lives off the government dole? He’s a welfare king?

I knew a Trump supporter like that. The irony was just stunning. They have this mentality that they are one of the few actually deserving government benefits. Trump is only complaining about those others (I.e. the brown ones). Their obtuseness was just utterly stunning to me.

But there’s a lesson in that: people don’t vote their economic interest. Democrats don’t seem to understand that.

They can't see beyond their own needs, their own little world. It's all welfare until they need to avail themselves of it. I knew a hardcore Trumper, a Bircher from back in the day who has daughter with psychological issues. She had yet to work a day in her life. As she came of age and could no longer be on their insurance, It gave him no pause to see about getting her help from the SSA.

It's like a Republican being against gay rights until their kid comes out. 'Then it's different.'

 

[lpetrich]

This bizarre and ‘bloodthirsty’ pro-Trump religious group cheered on Jan. 6 rioters – then mysteriously shut down - Raw Story - Celebrating 17 Years of Independent Journalism

A new Trump group claimed the name Jericho March as an unregistered trademark in late 2020 despite the term having been widely used for many years prior. The term “Jericho march” or “Jericho walk” has been used off and on over the last few decades by Christian groups protesting in support of social and political goals.

Robert M. Weaver, a onetime Trump administration nominee for director of the Indian Health Service, and Arina Grossu, a low-level Trump administration appointee in communications, spearheaded the name "takeover" for the pro-Trump group involved in the attempted coup of the U.S. Capitol.

“Just as the Israelites circled the walls of Jericho until the walls fell, so we use peaceful means of protest until truth, transparency and justice prevail,” Weaver stated in a Nov. 25, 2020 press release. “What’s at stake is the future of free and fair elections in our Republic. We seek true election reform to protect our American freedoms and the integrity of our election process. We believe that God has blessed America and will continue to bless her, if our people remain faithful to God’s call to holiness and repentance."

Grossu chimed in, “It is time for the people of God to activate in unprecedented ways. We have stayed silent for too long, but now the Church is rising up. Our God is mightier than any earthly power and He can restore truth and justice. This is also God’s call to unity in our Church. We are diverse in our Judeo-Christian beliefs and expressions, yet we come as one with childlike faith and trust in authentic worship of the One True God.”

But then,

"After Jan. 6th, the group locked its Twitter account and shut down its website, as the organizers presumably realized that aiding in insurrection carried more consequences than they, personally, wanted to bear," The Bulwark reported. "The Jericho March homepage now shows just two statements, both released in the days after the attack, claiming that the group had 'a history of totally peaceful marches' for 'election integrity' and that its aim was to be 'a peaceful prayer march where people of Judeo-Christian faith pray together, sing songs, and blow shofars.'"

Did its leaders decide that being close to an insurrection is dangerous for them?

 

[lpetrich]

Why An Expert In Political Violence Is Worried About Civil War In The U.S. | FiveThirtyEight
Barbara Walter
Politics Podcast: How Likely Is Another Civil War? | FiveThirtyEight
Interview with her.

She described looking at over 50 variables -- poverty, inequality, ethnic variety, size, topography, ... The best predictors:

• At least one faction organized on ethnic/religious/racial lines and attempts to dominate the others
• "anocracy" - halfway between democracy and autocracy

She talked about Slobodan Miloševič (Miloshevich) and how he led some Serbian nationalists against other ethnicities in ex-Yugoslavia.

Although the yearly risk of civil war may be small, it is cumulative. Rich countries do better than poor ones, but quality of democracy is a better predictor, and rich countries tend to be better at democracy than poor ones.

If some group is in political decline, then being in economic decline makes it worse.

US democracy has been in decline in recent years. The US reached anocracy in 2020, for the first time since 1800. But it partially recovered last year.

The US got an ethnically-based party for the first time in a long time during the Obama years, with the Republican Party becoming a mostly-white party. The Republican Party is less and less likely to win by one-person-one-vote.

Then discussing how Republicans have tried to recruit Hispanics, with some success. So the Republican Party is split.

 

[lpetrich]

Then she talked about the politics of ethnic factions, how their constituencies are essentially guaranteed. Slobodan Miloševič could talk to his fellow Serbs about how the Croats might murder many of them as they had done back in World War II.

She refers to the like of SM as ethnic entrepreneurs, those who make a career ought of such politics.

She talked about losing hope in politics and nonviolent protests.

She said that if the Republicans win fair and square, then they will get more confidence in democracy, reducing the risk of civil war.

She expects a decentralized sort of civil war, more like an insurgency rather than centralized armies.

To avoid civil war, strengthen democracy.

The interviewer mentioned a counterargument that talking about a possible civil war would make people fearful of it happening, and thus become a self-fulfilling prophecy. She responded by saying that ignoring a problem doesn't make it go away. Also that people who lived through civil wars didn't notice one coming until it was too late.

 

[lpetrich]

Why More Republicans Aren’t Outraged By Jan. 6 | FiveThirtyEight

Why aren’t more Republicans taking what happened on Jan. 6 seriously?

First and foremost, it’s possible that despite American democracy’s perilous situation, the threat still feels distant for many Americans. ...

The other factor at play here is the extent to which American politics has become a zero-sum contest. Nearly every issue and congressional vote is now framed in terms of winners and losers — and partisanship. ...

Taken together, these ideas form a powerful — if false and misleading — narrative that has taken hold among many Republicans: Events at the Capitol were harmless, and the efforts to hold people accountable is nothing more than partisan point-scoring. But, of course, many Americans do view what happened on Jan. 6 as a part of an ongoing threat to democracy, even if those opinions are largely split down party lines.

It's also self-interest, I think. This action makes the Republican Party look *very* bad. One might expect that party's leadership to order a big purge of Trumpists, but that leadership isn't doing so.

 

[lpetrich]

MAGA rioters asked Pelosi staffers to return items they dropped while ransacking her office: Jamie Raskin - Raw Story - Celebrating 17 Years of Independent Journalism

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) told Insider on Friday that several pro-Trump Capitol rioters dropped personal belongings while they were ransacking House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) office -- and then they called her office and asked how to get them back.

Quick-witted staffers handed the requests over to law enforcement officials, who promptly "got on the phone and said, yeah, just give us your name, your address, your social, you know, and we'll tie up these loose ends," Raskin said.

Raskin said that he found this incredible because the rioters seemed to really believe there would be no repercussions for their actions.

"What's so fascinating to me about that there really were people who felt as if they had been summoned to Washington by the president," he said. "And when they were told that they were trespassing and invading the Capitol, they said the president invited them to be there. They didn't have any kind of subtle understanding of the separation of powers. They just thought that the number one person in the US government had invited them to be there, and therefore they had a right."

noting
Capitol Rioters Called Pelosi's Office for 'Lost and Found': Raskin

This has to be one of the most naive coups in history. But it shows how incompetent Trump is.

 

[lpetrich]

'The Coming Coup': Inside the Republican effort to steal future elections - Raw Story - Celebrating 17 Years of Independent Journalism

Mother Jones reporter Ari Berman warns the Republican Party is laying the groundwork to steal the 2022 midterms and future elections through a combination of gerrymandering, voter suppression and election subversion, that together pose a mortal threat to voting rights in the United States. Republicans, many of whom are election deniers, are campaigning for positions that hold immense oversight over the election process. “What’s really new here are these efforts to take over how votes are counted,” says Berman. “That is the ultimate voter suppression method, because if you’re not able to rig the election on the front end, you can throw out votes on that back end.”

In effect, commit election fraud on a huge scale. That may be why the Republican Party is making a big issue out of voter fraud -- it's projection.

 

[lpetrich]

Asha Rangappa on Twitter: "THREAD. ..." / Twitter

THREAD. Since there’s so much [waves hands everywhere] crazy coming up all of a sudden, let me break down the theory of how the overturning of the election was supposed to go down:

STEP 1: John Eastman concocts a “legal blueprint” whereby VP Pence elides the requirements of the Electoral Vote Act based on 7 states submitting dual slates of electors, allowing Pence to either count the alternate slate or not count those states at all Eastman Memo

STEP 2: GOP operatives/officials in those 7 states in fact create a false slate of electors and submit them as official, so they can be used in the scenario above Trump allies' fake Electoral College certificates offer fresh insights about plot to overturn Biden's victory - CNNPolitics

STEP 3: DOJ, meanwhile, submits letters to each state, indicating (falsely) that they have reason to believe that there has been election fraud. This creates perception that results are actually in question, bolstering VP’s ability to discount their votes

***I should note here that, as with the quid-pro-quo with Ukraine, it wouldn’t have mattered if these states did not actually investigate voter fraud — the DOJ letters would have been enough to create *the appearance* that the outcome in these states was still in the air

STEP 4: The Big Lie is repeated in rallies and social media, saturating information space to rile up base and give momentum to “Stop the Steal” movement #StopTheSteal: Timeline of Social Media and Extremist Activities Leading to 1/6 Insurrection

STEP 5: Plan for all of these angry and agitated individuals to come to D.C. on January 6, the day that Eastman’s plan will be put into effect. The protesters are sent to march on the Capitol, to further put pressure on VP Pence and lawmakers, as stated in Oath Keeper indictment

STEP 6: Since mob attack is intended to keep up pressure on Pence/lawmakers, they must be able to remain in Capitol as long as possible. So: 6a) Purge top DOD and replace with loyalists; and 6b) delay LE/National Guard response as long as possible January 6: National Guard Delay Was Pentagon Officials' Choice, Memo Alleges - "Never Forget That Trump Purged the Pentagon Leadership Between the Election and January 6" - "And that the new leadership he installed seized direct control over deploying the National Guard that day. And that deployment was delayed for hours."

STEP 7: ??? I’m not sure what was supposed to happen at this point. Presumably, Pence would somehow declare Trump the winner, or if not, the Capitol would remain occupied until they found a way to make him do it. Seems like they planned to continue the siege

The point is that there are a lot of moving parts and evidence surfacing in a lot of different areas but they are all connected to one overarching goal: Keep Trump in power by subverting the counting of the electoral votes and preventing the transfer of power to Biden /END

 

[lpetrich]

Meidas Perseveres 1 RT at a Time on Twitter: "@AshaRangappa_ The Eastman memo suggested that Pence could recuse himself and Grassley could take his place. Just prior to Jan6 Grassley said he would be counting the elector votes.

When Pence refused Trump’s orders, the mob was unleashed to murder Pence and replace him with Grassley. (pic link)" / Twitter

Trump allies' fake Electoral College certificates offer fresh insights about plot to overturn Biden's victory - CNNPolitics

In the weeks after the 2020 election, then-President Donald Trump's allies sent fake certificates to the National Archives declaring that Trump won seven states that he actually lost. The documents had no impact on the outcome of the election, but they are yet another example of how Team Trump tried to subvert the Electoral College -- a key line of inquiry for the January 6 committee.

The fake certificates were created by Trump allies in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and New Mexico, who sought to replace valid presidential electors from their states with a pro-Trump slate, according to documents obtained by American Oversight.

noting
American Oversight Obtains Seven Phony Certificates of Pro-Trump Electors - American Oversight

I've never heard of this kind of election fraud before.

 

[lpetrich]

#StopTheSteal: Timeline of Social Media and Extremist Activities Leading to 1/6 Insurrection

The insurrectionist attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was not spontaneous.

The assault that unfolded as Congress convened a joint session to certify the victory of Joe Biden in the 2020 election was the direct result of a months-long effort rooted in disinformation; promoted by President Donald Trump; coordinated by some of his most fervent, conspiratorial supporters; and incorporating a wide range of supporting groups.

Then going into a lot of detail about it.

 

[Swammerdami]

I think too many of these people fail to recognize a basic fact. Why should people support democracy if it doesn’t do anything for them? That may seem odd, but for so many democratic leaders, they seem to default to a notion that people will always support a democracy. But they won’t if it’s not a real democracy that can give them prosperity and peace. Our system is controlled by an elite that manipulates the voters. We’re ruled by lobbyists who control politicIans with money. The fundamental problem is growing income inequality. The failure to ensure that everyone has a stake in the system has led to many who no longer care to support the system and want to see it all come crashing down. It’s not that they have a simple love of fascism, it’s just that they’re more anarchists.

But what is very sad is that the Biden Adminstration almost passed legislation that would have done more to redress inequalities since programs in the 1930's (and perhaps 1960's). These programs would have been signed into law by Joe Biden already if the traitorous Senators Manchin and Sinema loved America more than the millions that Charles Koch funnels to them.

Unfortunately millions of American voters won't think beyond "Same-same" in understanding this failure.

 

[Swammerdami]

This has to be one of the most naive coups in history. But it shows how incompetent Trump is.

Incompetent? His fortes have always been grift, fraud, and a speaking "charisma" that entices dolts. He continues to shine at his strengths.

For the J6 coup to succeed was always an extremely unlikely long-shot; the insurrection was just for show. The actual J6 fighting was all done by expendable low-IQ stooges. Anyway, being out of office gives him more flexibility for corrupt and criminal activities. (Surely he left office with secrets of great value to foreign intelligence services and perhaps to U.S. lobbyists. Do we know how he is monetizing this info?)

 

[Elixir]

he left office with secrets of great value to foreign intelligence services and perhaps to U.S. lobbyists. Do we know how he is monetizing this info?

No, but we should. There should be surveillance blanket over that fucker so thick that he can’t so much as fart without it being recorded.

 

[TV and credit cards]

"What's so fascinating to me about that there really were people who felt as if they had been summoned to Washington by the president," he said. "And when they were told that they were trespassing and invading the Capitol, they said the president invited them to be there. They didn't have any kind of subtle understanding of the separation of powers. They just thought that the number one person in the US government had invited them to be there, and therefore they had a right."

Stop being fascinated congressman. By this time, this lack of understanding, of awareness should not fascinate you.
In 2016 I thought many people got suckered into voting for Trump. That in 2020, many would have realized their error. That surely Trump would lose in a landslide. That didn’t happen. Trump’s showing at the ballot box should have been all the clue you needed for you not to be fascinated by any of this.

 

[Elixir]

surely Trump would lose in a landslide. That didn’t happen.

Yes, it did. He lost by more than 7 million votes and by an electoral margin that Trump himself called a landslide.
The fact that the playing field is tilted toward Republicans so that 43,000 votes could have flipped the electoral college despite a 7 million+ popular vote margin, is a testament to how heavily rigged the system is, not a measure of any enduring popularity of FFvC.