Remove From Office (nanzi newsletter screed)

I believe that the President's rhetoric incited an armed insurrection against America yesterday. The gleeful desecration of the U.S. Capitol, which is the temple of our American democracy, and the violence targeting Congress are horrors that will forever stain our nation's history. In my opinion, this was instigated by the President of the United States' words and actions.

In calling for this seditious act, the President has committed an unspeakable assault on our nation and our people. I join the Senate Democratic Leader in calling for the Vice President to remove this president by immediately invoking the 25th amendment. If the Vice President and the Cabinet do not act, the Congress may be prepared to move forward with impeachment.

Justice will be done to those who carried out these acts, which were acts of sedition and cowardice. Those whose purpose was to deter our responsibility failed. They did not divert the Congress from our solemn constitutional purpose to validate the overwhelming election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as President and Vice President of the United States.

Despite the desecration of our Capitol, we upheld the bedrock principle that the people are sovereign and that they hold the power to choose their leaders through the ballot, rejecting this attempted coup encouraged by the President's rhetoric.

The House worked through the evening and into the morning to validate the electoral count proclaiming Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the duly elected President and Vice President of the United States.

“sedition”, “insurrection” and double standards?

2 Oct: National Review: AP Stylebook Discourages Use of ‘Riot,’ Expands Definition of ‘Protest’ to Include ‘Violence’
by Brittany Bernstein
The Associated Press Stylebook was amended this week to discourage the use of the word “riot” to describe violent protests, instead expanding the definition of “protest” to include violent demonstrations.

“Use care in deciding which term best applies: A riot is a wild or violent disturbance of the peace involving a group of people. The term riot suggests uncontrolled chaos and pandemonium,” said the AP Stylebook, which sets style guidelines followed by many mainstream media publications.

“Focusing on rioting and property destruction rather than underlying grievance has been used in the past to stigmatize broad swaths of people protesting against lynching, police brutality or for racial justice, going back to the urban uprisings of the 1960s,” it added...

The recommendation comes after months of rioting and looting in cities nationwide sparked by the death of George Floyd in May...

“Protest and demonstration refer to specific actions such as marches, sit-ins, rallies or other actions meant to register dissent. They can be legal or illegal, organized or spontaneous, peaceful or violent, and involve any number of people,” the AP said. “Revolt and uprising both suggest a broader political dimension or civil upheavals, a sustained period of protests or unrest against powerful groups or governing systems.”...
https://news.yahoo.com/ap-stylebook-discourages-riot-expands-201233563.html

6 Jan: AP Stylebook: How to describe the events at the U.S. Capitol
by John Daniszewski, Vice President for Standards
AP style in the event of civil disturbances allows editors and journalists to choose the term that in their judgment best applies. So far, our main story has spoken of a “chaotic protest aimed at thwarting a peaceful transfer of power,” a “melee” and a “raucous, out-of-control scene.”

MOB, RIOT OR INSURRECTION OK: Considering that armed protesters broke into the building, overwhelmed Capitol police, interrupted the process of certifying Electoral College votes and forced the evacuation of the vice president of the United States and members of Congress, “protest” may be too mild a word for the action without surrounding it with strong adjectives and context, such as “violent protest” or “rioting protesters.” Calling it a “mob” or a “riot” would also be appropriate, especially when the protesters’ actions were wild, widespread, violent and uncontrolled. The term “insurrection,” meaning the act of rising up against established authority, could also be justified.

NOT A COUP: Some people and broadcasters are calling the protesters’ action a “coup” or a “coup attempt,” meaning a sudden, organized seizure of political power or an attempt by a faction or group to seize political power suddenly outside of the law. We may of course quote others alleging a coup or attempted coup, but so far AP has not seen conclusive evidence that the protesters’ specific aim was to take over the government, so at this stage we are avoiding the term in AP copy unless attributed.

As always, journalists should look at the events with an open and dispassionate mind and decide what language best applies. When in doubt, consult managers and senior news leadership.

Finally, reiterating our recent Standards message: Please refrain from expressions of personal opinion about these political events in your social media or contacts with others. Let’s let the facts in AP’s reporting speak for themselves...
https://www.apstylebook.com/blog_posts/17

“I believe that the President’s rhetoric incited an armed insurrection against America yesterday.”

First of all, the only ones armed that I’m aware of were law-enforcement officers who shot and killed an unarmed woman who was threatening to open a door. Are there any reports that anyone else in the Capitol was armed?

Secondly, how does a sitting President incite an insurrection against the government that he heads? Biden wasn’t the President of anything yesterday and he isn’t the President of anything today, his faux “Office of the President-Elect” notwithstanding.

But I agree, Nancy’s chair was likely desecrated, at least I hope it was.

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