As it turns out, the January 6 attack on the Capitol was only the first salvo of the Trump Insurrection. Even as the rioters were leaving Washington, they were already planning to return on or about January 20th to disrupt the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Joe Biden.
The white supremacist group, the Boogaloos have planned a January 17 protest and several groups are reported to be scheming to hold armed protests in all 50 state capitals from January 17 through the 20th.
Lawmakers are continuing their efforts to have Trump removed from office prior to the end of his term. They are also striving to strip Trump of the perks afforded to ex-presidents, which include a lifetime salary as well as a lifetime stipend for travel. If convicted by the Senate, Trump would also be banned from running for office again, as he was planning to do in 2024.
Meanwhile, Republicans, who fueled the insurrection with their refusal to acknowledge the election results and baseless claims of voter fraud, are now calling for unity in the wake of Trump’s second impeachment. As threats of more acts of violence and insurrection continue , Republicans, and the Insurrectionist-in-Chief, are claiming that Democrats are stoking “tremendous anger” while alternately saying they condemn violence. They are making false claims that the insurrectionists were actually Antifa and comparing the events of January 6 to the Black Lives Matter protests in Portland or Seattle.
And yet they have the hypocrisy to call for unity after they’ve voted to deny the election results of those states where Trump lost.
It’s not unity they want. Instead, they want to ignore the facts. They want to ignore that Trump incited insurrection and the violent overthrow of the government. Like the past impeachment, they are taking to the airwaves to claim, once again, that impeachment isn’t necessary because Trump has learned his lesson.
And while the nation is under siege, Trump is facing numerous personal battles of his own.
In addition to the legal issues he already faces in the Southern District of New York, which are aimed at uncovering Trump’s financial crimes, he is facing further financial woes as almost a billion dollars in debt comes due when he leaves office. The recent insurrection has caused his primary lender, Deutsche Bank to sever ties, cutting off a major influx of cash. Major corporations are also cutting off funding to Trump, along with members of Congress who opposed certification of Biden’s victory.
Still, we remain a nation under siege.
With Trump being impeached for a second time, there are still those who did not vote to impeach, not because they believed him, but that they and their families were receiving death threats. In the coming days and weeks, we will see if, once he is out of office, these hate groups will once again fade into the background. Or not.
Until then, we remain one nation…under siege.