Enough With the Outrage

Powerline Blog ^ | JANUARY 7, 2021 | JOHN HINDERAKER

[Yo-Yo]

Like pretty much all conservatives, I have consistently criticized riots and other forms of political violence for many years. That includes yesterday’s Washington, D.C. riot. You can’t say the same about liberals, however. Until yesterday, one might have thought that liberals consider rioting and other forms of political violence to be as American as apple pie.

You could write a book in support of that proposition, but for now let’s cite just a few examples. Do you remember when President Trump was inaugurated on January 20, 2017? Leftist Democrats rioted in Washington that day. That riot was arguably worse, more violent and more destructive, than what happened in D.C. yesterday. The liberal rioters destroyed stores, set vehicles on fire and battled with the police. Six police officers were wounded. Here is a video reminder:

https://youtu.be/cGUCq5fpMGo

I don’t recall a single Democratic office-holder denouncing the Democrats’ Inauguration Day riot, and the Associated Press came perilously close to praising the rioters.

Over the ensuing four years, Antifa and Black Lives Matter rioted countless times, bringing devastation to cities like Portland, Seattle, Kenosha and Minneapolis. Did any Democrats denounce these riots? Not that I remember. Many Democrats endorsed them, or seemed to do so. Kamala Harris, for example, said about the riots in June:

They’re not going to stop. They’re not going to stop. This is a movement, I’m telling you. They’re not gonna stop. And everyone beware because they’re not gonna stop. They’re not gonna stop before Election Day and they’re not going to stop after Election Day. And everyone should take note of that. They’re not gonna let up and they should not.

This was after 12 people had been killed in Democrat-sanctioned rioting, and billions of dollars in destruction committed. Have any Democrats denounced Black Lives Matter for its role in the riots? Not one. Has any Democrat denounced Antifa? Not that I know of, and some, like Keith Ellison, have specifically endorsed Antifa’s political violence.

Democratic Party journalists have joined the party’s politicians in excusing riots. The New York Times, for example, published an admiring profile of Antifa. The Washington Post, likewise, has carried water for Antifa.

The litany could go on for a long time. Yesterday’s assault on the Capitol was outrageous, but let’s not forget that last time out-of-control demonstrators interrupted business at the Capitol, shouted down senators and pounded on the doors of the Supreme Court, it was Democrats objecting to the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

And speaking of assaults on capitols, did any Democrats object when leftists occupied the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison for four months, destroying property, impeding public business and violently assaulting conservatives? Not a peep.

Minnesota’s capitol has come under attack, too–or at least, Republicans who tried to gather there. In March 2017, Antifa Democrats besieged the state Capitol:

On March 4, Antifa members…flooded the Capitol building to disrupt local Trump supporters who were gathering in conjunction with the national March 4 Trump movement.

Many Antifa members attempted to conceal their identity by covering their faces with bandanas and goggles. [T]he rioters used mace, tasers, smoke bombs, and firecrackers on members of the pro-Trump rally, and punched others in the face.

One of those arrested and prosecuted for carrying out this criminal violence was Linwood Kaine, son of Senator and Vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine. Yawn. Democrats couldn’t be bothered to criticize rioting by their own supporters, let alone their own family members.

And let’s not forget James Hodgkinson, even though every reporter in America apparently has. Hodgkinson was the Bernie Sanders campaign volunteer who tried to assassinate the entire House Republican baseball team and very nearly succeeded, inflicting grievous and permanent injuries on Congressman Steve Scalise. Hodgkinson was not the usual 20-something loner, he was a middle-aged union official who was not insane, but just full of hate. His Facebook page was festooned with over-the-top attacks on Republicans, taken directly from speeches by Bernie Sanders and every other prominent Democrat.

Sanders issued a one or two line statement distancing himself from his volunteer’s would-be murder spree. But neither Sanders nor any other Democrat wondered whether Hodgkinson’s attack was related to their own crazed conspiracy theories (Russia hoax, etc.) and other lies that they routinely direct against Republicans.

This could go on and on, but the point is obvious: Democratic Party politicians and reporters have no standing to complain about political violence (let alone mostly peaceful protests) until they get their own house in order.

Today we are awash in ritual denunciations of President Trump, based on yesterday’s riot. Democratic House members have introduced new articles of impeachment, which I assume charge him with responsibility for the disorder. Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi have urged Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment, alleging that President Trump is disabled or incompetent so as to remove him from office.

These initiatives are ridiculous on their face. Trump will be out of office in a matter of days, long before any such “remedies” could be implemented, even if they were even remotely warranted. What is going on, obviously, is not an attack on Trump, but on his legacy. The Democrats–aided and abetted by some Republicans, unfortunately–are trying to discredit the president so thoroughly that not just his personality, or unjustifiable acts like his apparent encouragement of those who “wouldn’t stand for” the Democrats’ widespread voter fraud are denounced, but, far more important, his many accomplishments in office.

Trump was, despite his flaws, a very good president. He has impressive achievements to his name, almost all of which the Democrats want to reverse, to the great prejudice of the American people. This is what Chuck Schumer et al. are trying to achieve–a comprehensive repudiation of Trump’s positive legacy.

Tax cuts? Discredited! An America-First foreign policy? Discredited! Enforcing the immigration laws, which is the president’s constitutional duty? Discredited! Stopping the China sellout? Discredited! Standing up to Russia? Discredited! Supporting the Israelis? Discredited! Cutting back on unproductive federal regulations? Discredited! Encouraging U.S. energy production and independence? Discredited! Objecting to political correctness and cancel culture? Discredited! Standing up for America as a positive force in world history? Discredited!

It is blindingly obvious that in the last days of the Trump administration, the Democrats are laying the groundwork for a comprehensive repudiation of the considerable achievements of the last four years, tying them all to Trump’s sometimes-unfortunate personality, and in particular to yesterday’s riot, which was small beer compared with countless riots that the Democrats have either cheered on or indulgently tolerated.

What is important for conservatives is not to defend Donald Trump’s personality, still less the events of the last 24 hours, but rather to defend, aggressively, the solid achievements of an administration that surmounted four years of hysterical and dishonest obstructionism by the Democrats. It is unfortunate that some Republicans, joining in the Democrats’ hyena troop, do not seem to understand this.

[Yo-Yo]

Well said, and it needs saying.

[MNnice]

Required reading. Of course it’ll never see the light of day outside of conservative web sites.

[srmanuel]

He’s making excellent points, but for the most part Republicans are the party of surrender who have no balls for a fight...

What’s the old saying, When the going gets tough the tough get going...but for Republicans it’s, when the going gets tough, run like hell away from everything...

[grobdriver]

Finally someone puts it into perspective.

I am SO sick of pious conservatives in addition to the predictable left whining and moaning about the DC protest.

I'm not even reading half of the posts here this morning due to that kind on content. Get on the band wagon! Excoriate Trump! Orange man bad!

Sheesh. FOAD.

[redangus]

Totally agree and this does not bode well for the country going forward. Anyone who has believed Biden’s call for unity and coming together should see that is just so much focus group tested rhetoric. The Left and the DS must act quickly to repudiate and destroy everything Trump has done. He has awakened a new populist voting bloc that must be strangled in it’s infancy before it can threaten their power. It’s going to get very ugly and very dangerous real quick after January 20th.

[RC one]

The demorats are where they are now because they threw an epic temper tantrum that lasted for 4 years. That’s the standard now AFAIC and so now it’s our turn. Any Republican that isn’t down for the fight can count on me not voting for him or her. If they show me some 1994 Newt Gingrich fire in the belly, I’ll vote for them. 2022 needs to be all about culling the RINOs and the globalist sell outs from the herd. We don’t win anything by holding our noses and keeping the bums in at this point. IMHO.

[MeneMeneTekelUpharsin]

Bump for reference. Who are the Democrats to tell us ANYTHING? Hypocrites.

[ClearCase_guy]

It seems pretty clear that things will get very bad. Violence, economic collapse, foreign wars. Political suppression and purges.

And I imagine the MSM will be right there to tell all Americans, “Boy, Trump sure left a mess. Just imagine how awful things would be if we didn’t have the wise guidance of President Harris!

[Does so]

Bump...

[Erik Latranyi]

Only the most STUPID conservative would expect equal treatment after the last 5 years.

[HighSierra5]

Yes. His legacy,America first, is definitely on their list of assassination. They have to. It’s antithetical to their wicked ways.

[MayflowerMadam]

“Republicans are the party of surrender who have no balls for a fight.”

“Law-Abiding” explains it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njyi7zWZKxg

[JennysCool]

2022 needs to be all about culling the RINOs and the globalist sell outs from the herd.

Or maybe the entire herd needs to go. Our Congresspeople have done nothing for years but whine and collect money donated by naive people who believe they actually do something.

By their nature, nearly all politicians have a psychological need for attention, and approval. The worst thing that could happen to these egomaniacs is if people start ignoring them. Shunning them. If they send you a cheesy newsletter, send it back with postage due. If they hold one of those useless "town halls" in your neck of the woods, be conspicuous by your absence. And STOP donating money to them, even if you think they're one of "the good guys." Even "the good guys" have completely failed in what should be their primary mission: serving the people.

Don't give them the attention they crave. Let them know by your silence that you really have no use for them anymore, because they have made themselves useless.

[eyeamok]

The American Presstitutes are the Enemy of the People, without their coordinated complicit propaganda, the National Socialist Demonrat Workers Party would never be able to implement their plans for destroying this Country.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

As many have predicted, it only took them a day to begin erasing everything Trump accomplished AND erase all of us as well...

ABC demands 'cleansing’ Trump movement from America
by Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, January 07, 2021

Beware, 75 million Trump voters.

The media is calling for your ideological “cleansing” of Trump thought.

In a column and tweet, ABC’s well-respected political director Rick Klein made the call after yesterday’s pro-Trump riots inside the halls of Congress.

It is a sentiment throughout much of the political media and among Democrats who are also pointing an accusing finger at aides to President Trump who are resigning before their jobs end on Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day in 13 days.

“Even aside from impeachment and 25th Amendment talk, Trump will be an ex-president in 13 days. The fact is that getting rid of Trump is the easy part,” Klein wrote in his popular blog.

“Cleansing the movement he commands, or getting rid of what he represents to so many Americans, is going to be something else,” he added, drawing comments that it sounded too much like Hitler.

UPDATE: After this story posted, the tweet was deleted and the story wording changed. The "Cleansing" paragraph reads, "Cleaning up the movement he commands, or getting rid of what he represents to so many Americans, is going to be something else."

[RC one]

I would like to throw them all out but I also want to continue the fight, ramp it up a couple of notches in fact. I’m presently ambivalent but ultimately I will likely still vote for a real fighter provided he or she is fighting the right fight.

[KSCITYBOY]

BTT

[Hojczyk]

GOP is dead without Trump voters....but they will not vote GOP without Trump leading them...the GOP is dead they just do not care....

Trump got the fools reelected and of course they throw Trump under the bus...

Time for a new party....stock up on toilet paper

[RC one]

The RINOs will move into fill the void- the Mitt Romneys, Jeb Bushes, John Kasiches, etc. A message will need to be sent in 2022 unfortunately. I will give a fighter a chance if he or she seems genuinely interested in fighting the right fight. I’m not voting for anyone that piles on to Trump or talks about unity with the 🐀s. And I am proceeding forward with the realization that the 2A is dangerously close to the burn barrel. Maybe the NRA can pull off another win. Maybe our 3 new justices will be enough to hold the line. Maybe we can count on Manchin. Reid surprised us last time. Maybe there’s a deal to be made.

[Made In The USA]

Nailed what so many of us are likely thinking.