Tag: January 6

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Capitol Insurrection January 6

Two Jan. 6 Rioters Weep Like Babies When A Federal Judge Sentences Them To Years In Prison

Two men who attacked police officers on January 6, 2021 as they stormed the U.S. Capitol were sentenced to 44 months in federal prison, and they both wept like infants when sentence was handed down, according to The Washington Post.

“Two New York state men who led a mob that overwhelmed police at the perimeter of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — then bodysurfed over the top of the crowd at a building entrance and pepper-sprayed officers — were both sentenced Friday to 44 months in prison. Cody Mattice, 29, of Greece, N.Y., and James Mault, 30, of Brockport, N.Y., both wept as they stood before Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell and asked for leniency, apologizing for their actions and saying they hoped to return soon to their families and young children. But Howell noted that prosecutors had already cut them a reasonable deal by dropping charges that could have led to far more prison time, and she imposed the sentences requested by the government. Only four other Jan. 6 defendants have been sentenced to longer prison terms.”

Judge Howell told the two men:

“They were not patriots on Jan. 6, and no one who broke the police lines and stopped the democratic process was a patriot that day.”

Mattice and Mault were convicted in large part due to text messages they sent on the day of the Capitol insurrection, the Post added:

“Text messages obtained by the FBI showed that Mattice and Mault planned for violence on Jan. 6, initially expecting resistance from antifa. They texted family members during the mayhem, and then congratulated each other in the days after the riot, which temporarily halted the certification of the presidential election. Howell read from many of the messages, using the same profanity the men had.”

Despite both men saying that they showed up at the Capitol because due to urgings for failed, one-term former president Donald Trump, the ex-president sought to distance himself from the riots, telling journalist Olivia Nuzzi:

“They did it on their own behalf. I don’t think one person in the Capitol had a weapon, not one weapon.”

 

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Capitol Insurrection Congress GOP January 6

Jamie Raskin Goes Viral With Withering Takedown Of GOP Lies About January 6

Maryland Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin is fed up with the lies being peddled by his Republican colleagues and their echo chamber at Fox News, so he’s laying a devastating fact-check on those who continue to try and minimize what happened on January 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol when thousands of Trump supporters attacked Congress and tried to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

On the floor of the House Wednesday, Raskin offered a devastating rebuttal to those who still make excuses for the Capitol insurrection, labeling their lies “nonsense.”

It all begins, Raskin noted, with “Donald Trump’s Big Lie” that a second term in office was stolen from him.

“They say, ‘Who knows, maybe he won, maybe he didn’t. You say Joe Biden’s president, we say Donald Trump’s president.’ Nonsense!”

Raskin added:

“Sixty federal and state courts rejected every claim of electoral fraud and corruption that they put forward. Sixty. They don’t have a single court that ever ruled in their favor. Donald Trump lost that election by more than seven million votes, 306-232 in the Electoral College.”

As a result, Raskin said, “Their Big Lie has to stretch all the way over January 6. We have to disbelieve the evidence of our own eyes and our own ears. We saw them come and descend upon this chamber, this Congress, wounding and injuring 150 of our police officers, breaking people’s noses, breaking people’s fingers, putting people in the hospital, and already they’re back on the news with big lies saying, ‘No, no, no, it was a tourist visit.'”

The Maryland Democrat also slammed Republicans and Fox for continuing to suggest that Jan. 6 was a peaceful protest, writing on Twitter:

 “Tucker Carlson’s assault on the truth about January 6 is unconscionable, but more scandalous yet is Kevin McCarthy’s central role in its design. America, we cannot let McCarthy and Carlson become the Orwellian editors of our past or the authoritarian authors of our future.”

Jan. 6 was an attack on the American republic by domestic terrorists and their GOP supporters in Congress. If we forget or even minimize that fact, it could well happen again.

Here’s Jamie Raskin’s full speech:

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Capitol Insurrection Donald Trump January 6 WTF?!

Trump Releases A ‘Song’ With Some Of The Jan. 6 Defendants – And It’s BEYOND Disgusting

Once again proving that he has no conscience, no heart, and a coal-black soul, disgraced former president Donald Trump has joined with some of the domestic terrorists and insurrectionists who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 to record and release a song for the purpose of raising money for their legal bills.

According to Zach Everson of Forbes:

The track interpolates Trump reciting the Pledge of Allegiance into “The Star-Spangled Banner,” which is performed by a group of about 20 inmates, called the J6 Prison Choir, housed at the Washington, D.C. jail. The song ends with the inmates chanting, “USA!”

Profits are slated to benefit the families of people imprisoned for their alleged roles in the Capitol riots that left five people dead.

Trump recorded the Pledge of Allegiance at Mar-a-Lago a couple of weeks ago, specifically for this track. The inmates, who sing the national anthem nightly, were recorded over a jailhouse phone about a month ago. The song, which runs 2 minutes and 20 seconds, was reportedly produced by a major recording artist who was not identified.

Who is eligible to receive money from the fund created for the insurrectionist scum? Anyone, unless they’re charged with assaulting a police officer, which is ironic when you consider that none of the Jan. 6 attackers or Trump himself seemed the least bit concerned with the brave cops who had to fight against the MAGA mob that was chanting “Hang Mike Pence!” as they breached the Capitol entrance and began looking for Democrats they could execute.

Not horrible enough? Well, how about this tidbit: Trump insisted that he be allowed to participate in the recording.

A different recording project involving the inmates had been discussed, according to a person with knowledge of the project granted anonymity so they could speak candidly about the track before it was released. But when Trump heard about the original plan, the former president asked to be directly involved.

A terrorist ex-president aiding people who tried to kill members of Congress. That alone should invalidate Trump’s quest for a second term in office.

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Capitol Insurrection January 6 Mike Pence

Former Federal Judge: Pence’s Legal Battle Against Special Counsel’s Subpoena Will Destroy Him

J. Michael Luttig is a conservative former federal judge who is widely respected in legal circles, and he has a stark warning for former Vice President Mike Pence: Your attempt to get out of a subpoena from Special Counsel Jack Smith is likely to backfire on you.

Writing in a New York Times op-ed, Luttig notes that Pence has vowed to take his appeal of Smith’s subpoena “all the way to the Supreme Court,” and offers this advice to the ex-VP:

“A politician should be careful what he wishes for — no more so than when he’s a possible presidential candidate who would have the Supreme Court decide a constitutional case that could undermine his viability in an upcoming campaign.”

The op-ed from Luttig comes just days after he made the same argument on Twitter, laying out the nightmare scenario which could soon face Pence if he does indeed decided that he will continue to fight Smith’s subpoena.

“It is an unsettled question of constitutional law whether a Vice President of the United States possesses qualified Speech or Debate Clause privileges and protections when he or she serves, in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment, as President of the Senate”

Luttig then followed up with a series of postings in which he ripped apart the shaky legal footing Pence was claiming as a way of avoiding having to testify.

Pence will not prevail with his legal shenanigans, Luttig concludes, reminding the the former vice president that the longer he draws out the matter, the worse the timing will be for him and his possible political future:

“Mr. Pence may also be under the impression that the legal fight over his claim will confound the courts, consuming months, if not longer, before he receives the verdict — but it’s unclear what he hopes to gain from the delay. One would have thought Mr. Pence would have seized the propitious opportunity afforded him by Mr. Smith, most likely weeks or months before he even decides whether he will run for the presidency.”

Will Pence heed Luttig’s advice? Considering his slavish devotion to the failed ex-president, it seems unlikely.

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Capitol Insurrection Fox News January 6 Justice Department

Will Special Counsel Jack Smith Charge Fox News For Their Role In January 6?

Now that a court filing has proven Fox News knew former president Donald Trump’s claims about the 2020 election were complete bullshit, it’s worth considering the following question: Is Fox legally culpable for their role in the January 6, 2012 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and could they be charged by Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith?

The answer to those questions is a resounding “yes,” according to former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner, who spoke with MSNBC host Katie Phang today.

Specifically, Kirschner said he believes Fox helped incite the rioting and needs to be held accountable.

“These were not lies about which toothpaste will make your teeth whiter, or which floor wax will make your floors more shiny, these were lies about whether the American peoples’ votes were stolen and their election rigged.”

Kirshner added:

“It’s like they were packing the case with gunpowder, using these lies as a vehicle to keep the viewership, you know, engaged. They were just waiting for Donald Trump to light that gunpowder — which he did on January 6th and it erupted into violence.”

The former prosecutor then laid out the case that can be made against Fox:

“I think we need to challenge the federal government — this defamation suit is important — but what is even more important is the federal government needs to step up and address these intentional and reckless lies. I would argue are reasonably likely, if not intended to, incite imminent violence. This issue has got to be grabbed onto and shaken and addressed.”

Kirschner concluded by explaining that the Justice Department has a responsibility to make sure what took place on Jan. 6 never happens again:

“Should Jack Smith begin to dig into the implications of Fox News, you know, riling up the Trump base such that Trump now has a more willing, more ready group of insurrectionists?

“I think it is an abdication of the federal government’s responsibility if they don’t find the right vehicle, the right organization, to dig into these problems to try to protect the American people from these faux news organizations. Indeed, they [Fox] did incite imminent violence on January 6th. Does Jack Smith have adequate predication, fancy term for enough evidence, to begin investigating the impact that the Fox News lies had on what happened on January 6th? I sure hope he concludes that he does.”