In a corridor of the U.S. Capitol, a plaque honors the Logan Militia of Pennsylvania. This unit arrived in Washington in response to Lincoln’s call to protect the Capitol in the very first days of that insurrection.
On Jan. 6, 2021, in the new insurrection, a man inspired and encouraged by Donald Trump carried a large Confederate flag past this plaque. Our Capitol was not defended on that day.
How could law enforcement not have prepared for Trump’s mob, when he had been promoting it as a “wild” event for weeks? Furthermore his personal lawyer that very morning called for the election results to be settled by “trial by combat.” Nonetheless, by mid-afternoon our representatives and senators were cowering under their desks wearing gas masks as a very limited number of police were barricading the doors with furniture.
Compare that response to the one Trump arranged against the Black Lives Matter protesters some months back. On that occasion three lines of guards in riot gear stood shoulder to shoulder at the Lincoln Memorial, tear gas was used extensively, and horse-mounted troops were employed. Low-flying helicopters were used against protesters on public streets.
Why such different responses? Perhaps because the Trump supporters were predominantly white, or perhaps just because he hoped they could block his condign removal. Both events reflect the fact that Trump values neither citizens’ First Amendment rights nor the actions of their elected representatives.
JAMES MOYER
Epsom