Today marks the one-year anniversary of a dark day in American history: the US Capitol riots.
As we reflect on the chilling day that left multiple people dead, it’s essential to take a step back and remember what led us to that point in the first place—and how to avoid ever doing so again.
Prior to the terrorist attack on the American landmark, numerous unfounded claims of a rigged election at the hands of Democrats began to circulate. With the biggest voice of this being none other than the former President Donald Trump.
You might recall right-wingers’ repeated shouting to ‘stop the steal’ that was certifying then-President-Elect Joe Biden. Thousands of Trump’s supporters gathered in Washington, D.C., on January 6 to attempt to prevent this from happening.
Prior to the in-person events, media coverage across Republican outlets largely contributed to the hysteria and riling up of extremists to take back the branch of government, a new video compilation shows how damaging this rhetoric ultimately became.
The supercut starts off with a clip from December 28, 2021, of Steve Bannon’s podcast War Room: Pandemic. Trump’s ally says during the video, “There’s a lot happening this week. People are getting revved up, people are getting fired up, people are getting madder—as they should.”
He adds: “We’re hurtling towards a historic event, January 6.”
Other points of the clip include right-wing news figures echoing this claim and further encouraging the public that January 6 is a day that they can force a historical change.
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is also included in the video where he can be heard screaming, “They are trying to steal this election in front of everyone…I don’t know how this is all going to end, but if they want to fight, they better believe they’ve got one.”
A Fox News host also is noted to have made a terrifying comparison that right-wingers have the opportunity to act like war soldiers fighting for freedom on January 6.
Senator Ted Cruz also makes a similar comment, saying on January 5: “Tomorrow is an important day. We have an obligation, I believe, to protect the integrity of the election.”
In response to the video compilation, many people online were horrified that so many media figures had participated in riling up right-wingers.
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“Never forget all these f****** ghouls tried to overthrow the USA a year ago…Never forget. Never forgive,” wrote one person.
Another person said, “This isn’t freedom of expression or speech. This is seditious behavior that should be punishable by a fine or by revoking their right to air their lies and misinformation.”
One tweet asked, “And yet.. they’re all still walking free.. why is that..?”