AI
Wednesday, January 05, 2022 9:27:07 PM
Will Donald Trump be called to account for the Jan. 6 attack on democracy?
Originally published January 5, 2022 at 4:14 pm | Updated January 5, 2022 at 4:14 pm
By David Horsey
Seattle Times cartoonist
We have come to the anniversary of the violent attack on the United States Capitol by a huge mob of Donald Trump’s supporters and, if anything, our politics look even more bleak than they did a year ago.
Then, with the dawn of a new presidency close at hand, there was hope that the insurrection on Jan. 6 might be the high water mark of Trumpism. Now, we know better. The conspiracy-driven, right-wing horde has not retreated; they have increased their grip on the Republican Party, from local party organizations all the way up to Congress, either forcing GOP elected officials to bow before them or give way so that one of their extremist comrades can take their place.
When solemn commemorations of those victimized by the insurrection take place this week in Washington, D.C., those ceremonies will have to compete for public attention with tirades on right-wing media and Republican-sponsored rallies that will extol the rioters as heroes and patriots.
It is a disgrace that so very few elected Republicans have exhibited real patriotism by condemning the insurrectionists and those who planned and goaded them into action. Thankfully, there is one: Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney. As vice chair of the House Jan. 6 Commission, Cheney has been a powerful and crucial voice speaking up for constitutional government and the rule of law. The evidence gathered by her committee has indicated ever more clearly that the insurrection was not accidental but coordinated by people close to former President Trump. Cheney has been bold enough to suggest that Trump himself may have broken the law by encouraging or failing to stop the attack on Congress as electoral votes were being tallied.
As punishment for her failure to show fealty to Trump, Cheney has been stripped of her leadership role in the House GOP caucus and excommunicated from the Wyoming Republican Party. Yet she has not cowered. She has maintained her resolute defense of democracy and traditional conservative values by speaking truth to the power of Trump’s Big Lie.
In November, Cheney gave a speech at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire in which she challenged her Republican colleagues to stand up against the authoritarian movement that Trump unleashed last Jan. 6.
“Will we put duty to our oath above partisan politics or will we look away from the danger and the threat, embrace the lies and enable the liar?” Cheney asked. “There is no gray area when it comes to that question, when it comes to this moment. There is no middle ground.”
https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/storm-clouds-gather/
Originally published January 5, 2022 at 4:14 pm | Updated January 5, 2022 at 4:14 pm
By David Horsey
Seattle Times cartoonist
We have come to the anniversary of the violent attack on the United States Capitol by a huge mob of Donald Trump’s supporters and, if anything, our politics look even more bleak than they did a year ago.
Then, with the dawn of a new presidency close at hand, there was hope that the insurrection on Jan. 6 might be the high water mark of Trumpism. Now, we know better. The conspiracy-driven, right-wing horde has not retreated; they have increased their grip on the Republican Party, from local party organizations all the way up to Congress, either forcing GOP elected officials to bow before them or give way so that one of their extremist comrades can take their place.
When solemn commemorations of those victimized by the insurrection take place this week in Washington, D.C., those ceremonies will have to compete for public attention with tirades on right-wing media and Republican-sponsored rallies that will extol the rioters as heroes and patriots.
It is a disgrace that so very few elected Republicans have exhibited real patriotism by condemning the insurrectionists and those who planned and goaded them into action. Thankfully, there is one: Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney. As vice chair of the House Jan. 6 Commission, Cheney has been a powerful and crucial voice speaking up for constitutional government and the rule of law. The evidence gathered by her committee has indicated ever more clearly that the insurrection was not accidental but coordinated by people close to former President Trump. Cheney has been bold enough to suggest that Trump himself may have broken the law by encouraging or failing to stop the attack on Congress as electoral votes were being tallied.
As punishment for her failure to show fealty to Trump, Cheney has been stripped of her leadership role in the House GOP caucus and excommunicated from the Wyoming Republican Party. Yet she has not cowered. She has maintained her resolute defense of democracy and traditional conservative values by speaking truth to the power of Trump’s Big Lie.
In November, Cheney gave a speech at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire in which she challenged her Republican colleagues to stand up against the authoritarian movement that Trump unleashed last Jan. 6.
“Will we put duty to our oath above partisan politics or will we look away from the danger and the threat, embrace the lies and enable the liar?” Cheney asked. “There is no gray area when it comes to that question, when it comes to this moment. There is no middle ground.”
https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/storm-clouds-gather/
Discover What Traders Are Watching
Explore small cap ideas before they hit the headlines.
