Opinion: Trump, GOP fail January 6 truth test

In this op-ed, Milwaukee resident Terry Hansen reflects on the events that took place on January 6, the response from Trump and other GOP members, and the threats to our democracy. 

“What I saw was just a war scene. … There were officers on the ground. … They were bleeding. They were throwing up. …   I was slipping in people’s blood. … It was carnage.  It was chaos.  It was just hours of hand-to-hand combat.”  — Police Officer Caroline Edwards, describing the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

There were more than 100 injuries to police officers on January 6, and a comprehensive review of police bodycam video revealed “approximately 1000” assaults on law enforcement on that day.   

Yet, in one of the greatest acts of revisionism and politically motivated reasoning in US history, former President Donald Trump calls the Capitol attackers hostages and patriots and promises to pardon them on day one of his presidency.  He also defends rioters’ “Hang Mike Pence!” chants, calls January 6 “a beautiful day” and often starts his rallies with a version of the National Anthem performed by January 6 prisoners.

Many GOP members of Congress, including House Conference Chair and potential vice presidential candidate Elise Stefanik (R-NY), have followed Trump’s lead. Remarkably, the Republican National Committee called the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol a “persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse.”

According to Reagan-appointed judge Royce Lamberth, “(I)n my 37 years on the bench, I cannot recall a time when such meritless justifications of criminal activity have gone mainstream. … I have been shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history … But the Court fears that such destructive, misguided rhetoric could presage further danger to our country.”

On Jan. 6, DC police officer Michael Fanone, a father of three, was repeatedly shocked with a stun gun at the base of his skull by Daniel Rodriguez and beaten with a flag pole until he was unconscious.  He suffered a traumatic brain injury and heart attack.  Rodriguez was sentenced to 12 years and seven months in prison and yelled, “Trump won!” as he was led out of the courtroom.  The judge called Rodriguez “a one man army of hate.”

Fanone testified, “So many of the people I put my life at risk to defend are downplaying or outright denying what happened.”  He is determined to use his platform “for the sole purpose of making people stop describing January 6th as anything other than what it was: a horrific day in which a lot of police officers almost died.”

Donald Trump needs to rethink what he means when he talks about “making America great again.”  Certainly, a great nation continues to honor the sacrifices of its police officers even when it’s not politically convenient to do so.  

Imagine how officers who were assaulted and their families feel when they hear Trump say, “They were there with love in their heart,” or when the officers are mocked by Fox News.  According to Terry Fanone, Michael’s mother, “It’s outrageous. It’s so dehumanizing, It’s so devaluing.”  And regarding the lack of criticism of Trump’s remarks by Republicans, she asserts, “The silence is palpable.”

So much is at stake. Historian Timothy Snyder reminds us that it is “our collective trust in common knowledge that makes us a society.”

At this critical time for our democracy, let’s heed the words of Voltaire: “Whoever can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”

Related: Newly-released info shows Trump’s Wisconsin team led the way on the fake electors scheme