Commentary
As we approach the third anniversary of the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump supporters intent on disrupting congressional affirmation of his 2020 election defeat, Trump and his MAGA Republican allies continue to spread damaging lies about the election and the insurrection itself—and argue against holding him accountable for his antidemocratic actions.
Trump’s lies about a “rigged” election stoked the insurrectionists’ rage and continue to poison our politics. New polling suggests that millions of Americans—including 34 percent of Republicans—wrongly believe the FBI organized and encouraged the insurrection, a theory promoted by far-right media and political figures for the past three years. As the Washington Post has noted, Trump true believers who embrace the theory are not moved by “the vast legal and evidentiary record” about Jan. 6 – much like those who believe Trump’s false claims about the legitimacy of President Joe Biden’s victory.
This week, Trump and his legal team asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a Colorado Supreme Court decision that Trump had engaged in insurrection against the United States and was therefore disqualified by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution from appearing on the presidential ballot in that state. Among the arguments in Trump’s filing are that the attack on the Capitol didn’t amount to an insurrection, and that nothing Trump did counted as engaging in insurrection. Thanks to the House Select Committee that investigated the insurrection before MAGA Republicans took over, evidence emerging from criminal investigations of Trump, and Right Wing Watch’s own research, we know how false that claim is.
Right Wing Watch reported on threats of violence from Trump supporters in the weeks and months before the insurrection:
Even before the election, Right Wing Watch warned about increasing threats of violence from Trump’s political supporters. When Trump and his allies launched an all-out effort to overturn the election, Right Wing Watch covered the so-called “Stop the Steal” movement and its rallies, threats of civil war, and the Trump team’s legal and political efforts to defy the Constitution, overturn the results, and keep Trump in power. Right Wing Watch reported on calls for Trump to declare martial law and documented calls for violence at a Jan. 5 rally in Washington, D.C. and on pro-Trump social media.
Right Wing Watch documented the role that religious-right leaders and Christian nationalist ideology played in fomenting the insurrection:
Right Wing Watch researchers documented the key role that Trump’s Christian nationalist supporters and Christian-right media played in spreading his lies and promoting his efforts to hold onto power unconstitutionally—and how Christian nationalist ideology fueled the insurrection and threatens democracy. Right Wing Watch reported on the violent Bible stories used by Trump supporters to mobilize support for “Stop the Steal” efforts, and how the influential evangelical Hillsdale College has promoted claims that the insurrection is a “hoax” Right Wing Watch was cited a dozen times in “Christian Nationalism and the January 6, 2021 Insurrection,” a report released by Christians Against Christian Nationalism and allied groups.
Right Wing Watch supported and amplified the congressional insurrection investigation:
In 2022, as the House Select Committee Investigating the Jan. 6 Insurrection focused attention on the criminal conspiracy theory to overturn the election, Right Wing Watch released video explainers about some key players like the Oath Keepers. Right Wing Watch video of Stewart Rhodes' civil war threat was shown at one of the hearings.
Right Wing Watch also built on the committee’s essential work. When Vice Chair Rep. Liz Cheney cited an email sent by a Republican lawyer as part of the campaign to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to block congressional affirmation of the Electoral College results, Right Wing Watch recognized the email’s author and explained that it was evidence of the extent to which Family Research Council officials were involved in the plot to keep Trump in power.
Right Wing Watch followed up many of the public hearings with analyses of the day’s revelations:
- What We Learned From Day Two of the Jan. 6 Hearings
- What We Learned From Day Three of the Jan. 6 Hearings
- What We Learned From Day Four of the Jan. 6 Hearings
- What We Learned From Day 7 of the Jan. 6 Hearings
- The Jan. 6 Committee Exposes How Trump Fomented the Capitol Insurrection Every Step of the Way
In addition, Right Wing Watch researchers briefed progressive activists in a series of online sessions hosted by coalition organizations to promote grassroots activism designed to urge local public officials to demand accountability for those responsible for attacks on American democracy.
Resisting the Ongoing Insurrection
Trump’s relentless effort to undermine faith in our elections and his increasingly authoritarian rhetoric affirm the truth of a Right Wing Watch analysis published on the first anniversary: “The Jan. 6 Insurrection Should Have Been No Surprise, and Neither Should the Next Right-Wing Coup Attempt.” Right Wing Watch continues to document the threat to democracy, for example, from Trump’s pledge to bring martial law-promoting Michael Flynn into a new Trump administration.
This year’s insurrection anniversary is a reminder of how much is at stake in the upcoming elections for president and Congress. Trump has made it clear that if he returns to the White House, he will use the powers of the presidency to seek revenge on anyone who resisted his attempt to cling to power, and to wage a scorched-earth campaign against the so-called “deep state.” The threat of empowering Trump’s authoritarian impulses would be magnified if Republicans like House Speaker Mike Johnson—who led congressional efforts to help Trump overturn the election—control Congress.
On Friday, Jan. 5, People For the American Way President Svante Myrick will join Rep. Jamie Raskin and other democracy advocates who are using the anniversary to highlight the importance of holding Trump and other insurrectionists accountable.
You can help People For the American Way protect your rights and freedoms from authoritarian MAGA Republicans like Trump by pledging to vote against MAGA authoritarians in upcoming local, state, and national elections.
