Refusal to say who perpetrated the attack feeds false narrative that left-wing groups were responsible
Many of the same Republican members of Congress who voted to reject the results of the presidential election have reacted to the Jan. 6 violent insurrection in a way that avoids blaming President Donald Trump’s supporters for their attack on the Capitol.
In statements, those lawmakers have used well-worn tactics, such as the passive voice, a focus on the acts instead of the actors and a vagueness that leaves a comment open to interpretation. That allows them to deflect from the reality that it was Republican supporters who attacked Capitol Police to occupy the Capitol for the first time since the War of 1812, and to conflate the mob with other protests over the summer.
Take Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, who led the charge Jan. 6 to try to reject the results of President-elect Joe Biden’s win in Pennsylvania, even though courts that examined Trump’s unfounded allegations of election fraud found no reason to question the outcome. Continue reading.