[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 40 (Wednesday, March 3, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E202]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         REVISITING JANUARY 6TH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOE WILSON

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 3, 2021

  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Madam Speaker, no one is defending the 
violent riot at the Capitol on January 6th and as more evidence is 
reviewed, I am grateful for the insight today by columnist Jack Devine 
in The Aiken Standard:

       ``My column four weeks ago--``The insurrection that 
     wasn't''--argued that portraying the Jan. 6 assault on the 
     U.S. Capitol as an armed insurrection is simply wrong, 
     unsupported by the facts.
       Not surprisingly, many disagree. The armed insurrection 
     label has been repeated so often and by so many that it has 
     become widely accepted as true.
       But we've learned a great deal since then about what 
     happened on Jan. 6 and what didn't--and we've watched as the 
     new Democratic leadership takes extreme and disturbing 
     actions to slay the imaginary dragon that they created.
       Let's take another look.
       The Capitol insurgents--mainly rowdy protesters caught up 
     in the moment--were not armed in any real sense. Their 
     inventory of ``dangerous and deadly weapons,'' as classified 
     by DOJ investigators, consist of two baseball bats, a hockey 
     stick, one pocket-sized extendable baton, a few cans of 
     commercially available pepper spray and bear repellant, and 
     other makeshift odds and ends. No knives and no guns. The 
     infamous zip-ties, initially considered to be proof positive 
     that the insurgents intended to take hostages, were later 
     determined to have been carried into the building by police 
     officers.
       The myth that Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick was 
     murdered by the frenzied mob has evaporated completely. The 
     New York Times has backed away from its bludgeoned-by-fire-
     extinguisher report; there was no evidence of blunt force 
     trauma; it appears that Sicknick died of natural causes 
     (probably a stroke) hours after returning to the station 
     house under his own power.
       Only one gun was fired during the four-hour assault--that 
     by an unidentified police officer who shot and killed Ashli 
     Babbitt, an unarmed female trespasser. While the FBI is still 
     combing videos to find someone to charge for Sicknick's 
     death, both they and the otherwise pit bull media seem 
     remarkably incurious about Babbitt's killing.
       None of the supposed targets of the Capitol assault--
     Democratic lawmakers and Vice President Pence--were harmed; 
     and the 2020 election result was not derailed by the attack 
     and was never in serious jeopardy.
       Make no mistake. The Jan. 6 riot was reckless, angry and 
     ultimately lethal. It cannot be condoned. But for a supposed 
     overthrow of the U.S. government, it looks pretty lame--and 
     more like the continuing wanton rioting that since mid-summer 
     has taken dozens of lives, destroyed untold livelihoods and 
     cost billions in damage to American cities.
       A mindless mob bent on venting its anger? Yes. An armed 
     insurrection? Not even close.
       And how are we dealing with this non-insurrection?
       House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is pushing for investigation by 
     a ``9/11-style commission''--implying that this bumbling 
     fiasco was somehow comparable to the 2001 terrorist attack 
     that murdered nearly 3,000 Americans.
       The U.S. Capitol complex in Washington, D.C., has been 
     turned into an armed camp. It was guarded during the 
     inauguration by 25,000 National Guard troops, thousands of 
     whom still remain. The barriers and checkpoints will be kept 
     in place through September. So far, none of the feared 
     domestic terrorists have reappeared.
       The Justice Department has been conducting a nationwide 
     manhunt for the Jan. 6 perpetrators and to date has arrested 
     and charged over 300. Reportedly, dozens are being held 
     without bail--a measure usually reserved for hardened 
     criminals arrested for heinous crimes--in stark contrast to 
     the revolving door treatment of thousands of violent rioters 
     apprehended in recent months and quickly released (and 
     provided bail money if needed by progressive organizations, 
     as encouraged by Democratic leaders including Vice President 
     Kamala Harris).
       Prospective U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland promises 
     to prosecute the Jan. 6 perpetrators to the full extent of 
     the law. It would be far better to call that riot what it is, 
     acknowledge the broader issue of escalating American violence 
     and deal with it in an even-handed way.
       In my column last month, I characterized our government's 
     response to the supposed insurrection as ``performance 
     art''--the art form that utilizes dramatic live performance 
     to evoke an emotional response. It's an apt comparison. The 
     net effect of the actions outlined above has been to cement 
     in the public mind inordinate fear of the risk posed by 
     domestic terrorism, particularly of the white supremacist 
     variety.
       Our leadership seems to think that if we're all terrified 
     enough, we'll go along without objection to the politicized 
     show-and-tell--Capitol Hill barricaded and patrolled by armed 
     troops, perpetrators hunted and held without bond, suspension 
     of due process, rampant censorship--America on a wartime 
     footing, but without the war.
       Any threat of terrorism, foreign or domestic, from left or 
     right, deserves serious attention--not hyperbole and 
     hysteria.''

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