I disagree. That is a generalization that will lead to more conflict in the future by alienating people who still support Trump.
Some are, sure. Many of the Capitol rioters may be. I know several Trump supporters who think the election was fraudulent in some way and still abhor the riot. They’re not racist. They are blue-collar workers who feel Trump was the only President in recent history who cared about their values and interests.
These are people whose livelihoods often depend on the goods and services impacted by policies like the TPP and Paris Accords. They fear progressive policies like those because they have very little education and formal training in only a narrow portion of their field. They feel that Trump BSD’d Iran and Kim Jong Un rather than giving in to international pressure. What they don’t care about is their coworkers / neighbors skin color(s).
This is about much more than racism, and trying to oversimplify the issues at hand leads to the same dangerous rhetoric Trump has espoused, just in the opposite direction.
I disagree. The dude who walked through the US Capitol carrying a Confederate flag on Wednesday probably didn’t have any thoughtful views on the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Trump and a frightening percentage of Republican politicians have given a wink and a nod to white supremacists. The tragedy is that so many people voted for Republicans despite this. If you tolerate white supremacists being on your side, then you condone white supremacy.
They’ve been doing this for 60 years at this point with ‘states rights’ arguments. The republican party has been targeting white supremacists for a lifetime, it’s a party that explicitly tolerates white supremacy.
I live in oil and gas country. Everybody here works for the petroleum industry, either directly or indirectly. They will vote (and protest) for the pro-petroleum candidate, because the other one is likely to cause a devastating impact on our economy and standard of life.
Not everybody who votes Republican is a racist, and the fact that you say that is divisive rhetoric. just as bad as the racists themselves.
On one hand, it’s true that generalization isn’t helpful, but it also doesn’t help when the President himself refuses to denounce white supremacy and other hate groups. When asked directly by a reporter, he told them to “stand back and stand by”, which they certainly did on January 6th, before breaking into the Capitol. Some might assert that Trump doesn’t condemn them because many of his supporters fall into those groups. It’s hard to condemn a group that supports you. The keyword, of course, is “many”. Whether the majority of them belong to hate groups is not clear. However, the damage to the Republican party is already done. For those who held a glimmer of hope that Trump supporters would support the democratic process…January 6th proved them wrong. When asked by soon-to-be President Biden to make a public announcement to condemn the violence and stop the rioters, some of them carrying guns, destroying property and stealing stuff, the supposed-to-be-leader of the nation instead said that the rioters were “loved” and “very special”. Those were not words one would expect from an actual world leader. He essentially gave his blessings to those trying to overthrow the election process through sheer violence.
Guy on the left in the photo, seen carrying flex-cuffs into the Senate, has been arrested by the FBI. Eric Munchel from Nashville. Why would a domestic terrorist take what are essentially handcuffs into the US Capitol?
Guy with the helmet, an Air Force veteran, was arrested by the FBI today in Texas. Also pictured with flex-cuffs in the Senate chamber. Him and the guy in prior post named in DOJ announcement linked here.
From what I’ve read, Trump didn’t even bother to call (or contact) Pence, despite knowing that those terrorists were quite literally trying to kill him. It’s almost as if he, himself, wanted Pence dead.
Party of law and order lmao
Bill Weir (@BillWeirCNN) Tweeted:
Horrific new video obtained by CNN shows a MAGA rioter (in white hat and backpack) grab a DC Metro officer and pull him down Capitol steps where he is stomped and beaten with an American flag pole.
At one point they sing the Star Spangled Banner https://t.co/XXJMxanGXp
