The January 6th hearings are the most compulsively watchable congressional hearings in decades. They’re so interesting, relevant, and (relatively) lively that C-SPAN audiences might finally rouse from their slumber, and it’s obvious these are the exact opposite of the snore-inducing Benghazi time-wasters overseen by congress’s version of Inspector Clouseau: Trey Gowdy.
The only troubling development I see is that it might (inadvertently) inspire some sympathy for the terrifying mob of insurrectionists that stormed the Capitol, tried to decapitate a branch of the U.S. government, and very much wanted to prevent the peaceful transfer of power for the first time in American history.
The general argument might be something like “These poor fools were used by Trump,” which is definitely true, but still doesn’t absolve them for blame. More specific arguments seem to center around the “tragic” fate of Ashli Babbitt, who Trump’s cultists have tried to portray as some martyr for freedom, instead of a pro-fascist thug. [If Ashli had been an Antifa member or a black woman, I have a feeling these same people crying tears for her might feel very differently.]
Then there’s someone like Beverly Hills salon owner Gina Bisignano, the Caitlin Jenner lookalike who somehow quit injecting botox into her face long enough to form her own version of “Real Housewives of the Third Reich” by storming the Capitol. The general sentiment seems to be “her life is falling apart,” should she be shown leniency?
Well, her life must not be falling apart too bad because she’s still alive…
There are several Capitol police officers who can’t say the same.
It is amazing who Republicans have sympathy for, and who they don’t. A rich, spoiled blonde woman with a good business in Beverly Hills decided it was important to travel across the country to help a spoiled, selfish, inexperienced billionaire who has never suffered a day in his life steal a race he lost; the same man who probably hurt her business by letting CoVid get so out of control, but that’s who she just had to help remain in power so she could keep losing money due to a disastrous CoVid response.
Does this woman’s Beverly Hills clientele like Trump? Almost certainly not. And so, again, someone whose business could absolutely suffer if her Trump fanaticism is widely known decides it is a great idea to risk it all to keep him in office. [Similar to Elon Musk sucking the nuts off of Trumpers and conservatives who DON’T actually buy Teslas or like them or can help him in any way at all and will turn on him in a second if the cult leader tells them to.]
Republicans feel sorry for coup plotters and insurrectionists who tried to destroy America’s peaceful transfer of power, but an unarmed black man shot dead at a traffic stop “wasn’t listening to the police.” Well, the police didn’t tell this woman to travel across the country to storm Nancy Pelosi’s office.