You can't really blame them for trying to dodge this huge bullet. But it's the blue whale (not merely the elephant) in the room.
The Senate has reported on security lapses on January 6, but that report is limited in scope. It doesn't get to the essence of the origins of the insurrection. That would take much more time and care.
But Republicans want the veneer of caring about this when in fact ugly political realities scream to hold them back. That's why they've filibustered paying for a far more sweeping investigation led by the House.
They've left it to the Democratic-controlled lower chamber to use its limited funding to do it. That's so they can attack it from the start, screaming bias and doing what they're best at--being victims.
But the real victim here, as it's been for some time now, is democracy. It is seeping away from us slowly but noticeably.
It will be partly restored. Person by person, perpetrators are being arrested and will stand trial. They might plead out or might challenge the charges. Make no doubt that some will be jailed for a while, as they should be.
Some claim to be sorry. Sorry for being caught, or sorry for having tried to wreck our nation's capitol? It reminds me of the bratty students who, when being caught talking inattentively in class, quickly replied "sorry," usually without looking at me, to do nothing more than deflect attention--and then start in again two or three minutes later. So I devised some responses: "Sorry means you won't do it in the future, right?" or "I won't believe you're sorry until you show me you're sorry by remaining quiet." It had better, if imperfect, effects.
The trick is to apply accurate charges: Criminal trespass. Assaulting a Capitol Police officer. Destroying federal property. All those are evident in the films. Some foolishly but lavishly sent pics and text messages to friends 'back home,' proving that they were at the scene and committing mayhem. Those were easily traced. It is to our advantage that Christopher Wray, who's held the position during two administrations, is still the head of the FBI. It lends credible non-partisanship to the proceedings.
But some will get away with it. Not all who trespassed or caused damage will be caught. That will encourage another breach in the future. That will encourage future perpetrators to bring weapons.
The only thing that might prevent that is for Republicans in Congress to admit their own mistakes, say that they just lost their tempers, and warn everyone away from another try. Without that, the future issue will remain unresolved. And with new Republican-supported vote-counting restrictions and overrriding options, the election of 2024 may also be unresolved enough to be challenged by both parties.
But Republicans can't admit siding with crazies because that would expose them as complicit. On the other hand, they would have something else to complain about.
Either way, we may be lurching toward an even larger mess here. There can be no compromise: The presidential election is signed and delivered, state by state, with no "serious irregularities," that catch-all, disingenuous smear implying that something must be wrong with the results, even though it was probably the most secure and best-counted election in our history.
But with the continuation of a commission of some sort, the most important thing to provide is closure. Without it, there will be questions dangling about the lack of coverage by the National Guard, the chain of command that day, the hesitation of the Pentagon to provide support, the reprehensible conduct of ex-, and the coordination of efforts by right-wing extremist groups leading up to and including that day.
From what Senate Republicans allowed to be reported, we do know that what constituted the communications system to let the Capitol Police know what was coming on January 6 either broke down or was simply inadequate. That, of course, is important to know. But that's more about systems in place and not about what got organized to cause the insurrection.
Though ex-'s speech electrified the crowd and certainly provided the sedition necessary, that alone didn't cause the assault. Those people got there with that already on their minds. We must learn why and how.
To be sure, journalism and independent investigations will go on. But they won't be nearly as timely as we need it to be. The day's reporting was, understandably, as disjointed as the event itself, so we know something about it all. But there's always more to know, and it can always be better presented and understood.
So, yes: Despite Republican efforts to dodge responsibility and accountability; despite the fear of the truth; and despite the interposing of complaints of politicizing the results, House Democrats owe it to the country to make their best effort to review and add to our understanding of January 6. We all saw what happened. We must better find the source.
We must put this behind us with the best account. You can't hide a blue whale.
Be well. Be careful. With some luck, I'll see you down the road.
Mister Mark
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