The Pardoning of the January 6th Insurrectionists

As a country we have recently witnessed the release from Federal prison of several “Proud Boy” members who were recently convicted of “Seditious Conspiracy” and “tampering with documents and proceedings”. Donald Trump, through executive order, has pardoned any and all of the 1500 people involved in the January 6th riots. The leader of the group, Stewart Rhodes, was sentenced by a jury to 18 years in Federal Prison. The January 6th 2021 riots led to the forced entry into the Capitol building where Congressmen and women were in session certifying the election results but were compelled to flee the premises pell mell in fear of bodily harm. Vice President Mike Pence was quickly escorted out of the building because he had disobeyed the commands of Trump who had insisted that Pence, through his authority as Vice President, not certify the election results which Trump claimed to have been fraudulent. One of Trump's closest allies, Steve Bannon, said earlier that Pence's head should be served up on a pike. Rioters surrounding the Capitol were chanting “Hang Mike Pence”. Not certifying the election results would have declared the election invalid and it would, at least for the time being, kept Trump in power as President.

Trump had clearly already decided that if he didn’t win the election he was going to try and reverse the results in his favor no matter what it took. He contacted the Secretary of State in Georgia telling him that he “needed to get him 11,000 votes”. That conversation was recorded and Trump was indicted for that exchange on the grounds that he was trying to coerce a public official to reverse the will of the American people. then decided to claim that the When VP Mike Pence refused to withhold certification of the election and the peaceful transfer of power, Trump decided to appeal to his motley crew of ready rioters. “Stand by and stand down”, Trump said to a crowd not far from the Capitol. Threats to government officials hadn’t worked as he had planned so it was time to inspire force from his dedicated and eager group of vigilantes.

There is no one who is questioning that these rioters forcibly entered the private offices of elected officials carrying firearms and other weapons and that they removed government documents. No one questions that the group of vigilantes threatened the United States government and its elected officials. Five people died within 36 hours of the incident and 174 police officers were injured.

The leader of the “Proud Boys” has been accused by his ex wife and his son of being emotionally and physically abusive to his entire family and to be forced to live in “extreme isolation in one particular cultural bubble in increasingly paranoid and militant right win political spheres, until they ended up in Montana”. The children suffered severe mental neglect and were illiterate." Trump has recently said that members of the “Proud Boys” might have a place in politics. Another high level “Proud Boy” member has vowed to seek revenge. What might that be?

What does the pardoning of these 1500 individuals say about “Law and Order” in this United States of America? The quick answer is that we don't have law and order except to the extent that our sitting President decides what (to him) is the law. Entering the country illegally with a loaf of bread with the intent to get a job for your family will be dealt with severely but forcibly (and with weapons and firearms) entering our Nation's Capitol and injuring 174 police officers while pursuing members of Congress with an expressed intent to hang the Vice President is NOT punishable. It is a justified act because it was done in the service of one private citizen at the time...Donald Trump so that he could avoid that clear fact that he didn't like the election results. He wanted to overthrow a perfectly legal election (and the will of the American people) and keep himself in power at all costs. There is a name for that and it’s called totalitarianism

If the BLM movement had invaded the Capitol building with the same results I have no doubt that any and all Trump supporters would be calling for their long term imprisonment (and probably their public execution, and maybe lynching) and to be labeled “terrorists”. Any forced entry into an institution is an illegal act but an organized act by a large group of individuals to forcibly invade our nation’s capitol while chanting “Hang the Vice President” is an act of shocking domestic terrorism that cannot go unpunished; it has gone unpunished

If me and a group of friends forcibly entered the White House tomorrow with flags and weapons and firearms (as did the rioters on Jan, 6) would we be pardoned from that behavior? The answer is, of course not, except if our illegal actions were in support of President Trump. This means that you are immune from the law if your illegal actions are on behalf of one man who has power but you are not immune if your actions are not on behalf of or in support of that one man in power. Laws don’t apply to dictators.

If a foreign terrorist group forcibly entered the Capitol they would likely be given the death penalty. We know what happened to Osama Bin Laden when he commissioned planes to be flown at the Twin Towers. That’s an example of how we treat anyone who forcibly enters the corridors of our Government, or even of our private financial institutions. Apparently invading our Government with weapons and threatening the Constitution and the peaceful transfer of power does not matter if you are doing it on behalf of a person in power.

We are a government of laws, not a government of “men”. Our elected officials serve our Constitution and our laws. We are not a dictatorship! Our Constitution protects us from unchecked power by any one individual. This is what the Founders Fathers feared more than anything, much more than foreign intervention.

A terrible and dangerous precedence has now been set. if you kill an adversary of Trump are you exempt from the law? Apparently yes! Laws are only for those who don’t agree with the President of the United States. If you are breaking a law on behalf of President Trump you can be assured to be pardoned. You may even be asked to serve in a government position in his administration.

When blacks were enslaved like dogs in this country for 300 years they never organized and invaded our government shrines. When Native Americans were exterminated to make room for European manifest destiny they never invaded the White House. When blacks were lynched in the streets and kept from attending public schools and from using public drinking fountains they never organized and invaded our Capitol. When women were not allowed to vote 150 years after our nation was founded they never organized and, with weapons, forced themselves into our Nation's government buildings.

No, it only happened at the hands of angry white men. No, it only happened when a man, with no substantiation whatsoever, with his narcissism as his only guide, inspired a group of "Proud Boys" to take action on the false grounds that the election was rigged. He wanted to prevent one of the most basic and sacred Constitutional tenets for his own private behalf. 74 bipartisan investigations have all concluded that the 2020 election was not hijacked and that the most egregious efforts at tampering came from the Republican side.

Do we have a Constitution or Not? Do we have a Government that serves one man or do we have a Government of laws?

Where do we go from here?