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If youre a soccer fan, youre probably painfully familiar with the concept of an own goal that humiliating moment when a ball ricochets off a defender right into the back of the goal they were diligently trying to defend. But its a lot harder to understand when someone drills an own goal in the arena of politics.

And yet President Biden and his team have managed to kick it backward on a white-hot issue that burns millions of Americans yet gets ridiculously short shrift from the rest of the electorate: the $1.7 trillion student loan crisis. In 2020, then-candidate Joe Biden was clear in promising voters a speedy move to eliminate the first $10,000 of an individuals debt, writing that young people and other student debt holders bore the brunt of the last crisis. Advocates pushed for a higher figure of $50,000 but were grateful for the Democrats support noting many experts believe the Higher Education Act gives Biden power to cancel loans by an executive order.

Yet some 11 months into his presidency, Biden has steadfastly refused to do this. Instead, the White House is all in on resuming loan repayments for millions of stressed-out Americans on hold for nearly two years because of the pandemic early next year. Not only is the administration keeping secret an internal report on whether Biden has authority to cancel the loans, but now his aides are trying to lay the blame for this fiasco on Congress even though the White House hasnt included student debt relief in any of its major economic bills.

A stunningly tone-deaf Jen Psaki, Bidens press secretary, heralded the resumption of loan payments in February by stating a smooth transition back into repayment is a high priority for the administration. Not a priority then, for Team Biden, would be either the economic benefits of lifting the millstone thats prevented so many 20-somethings and 30-somethings from buying a house or even getting married and starting a family, or the moral benefits of undoing a system that because of the wealth gap falls hardest on Black and brown Americans.

But arguably the worst look for Biden, and his Democratic Party, is the political fallout. A recent YouGov poll conducted for the Economist found a massive drop in support for Biden among the young voters under age 30 who were so critical to the presidents 2020 election victory both by giving the Democrat a big margin and also by turning out in larger-than-average numbers. Now, Bidens roughly 50% plunge in net approval with these young voters portends a 2022 disaster for the Democrats, since many disillusioned young voters may just stay home.

The implosion of Bidens popularity with teen and 20-something voters couldnt come at a worse time for the Democrats. Just this week, the stubborn opposition of West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, increasingly a Democrat-in-name-only who seems to work better with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce than his supposed colleagues, is threatening the Biden program that includes climate action, pre-kindergarten and extending the popular child tax credit. And a proposed pivot to the critical issue of voting rights would need a 180-degree change of heart about the filibuster from Manchin and Arizona Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.

READ MORE: From college to climate, Democrats are sealing their doom by selling out young voters | Will Bunch

Ironically, this could have been a very good week for the Democrats because of the high-profile work of the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection aimed at keeping Donald Trump in the presidency. New information emerging from the probe shows both a) the depths to which Team Trump was plotting a coup to prevent Biden from becoming president and b) the ways in which a new effort to install Trump in 2024, regardless of the vote count, is afoot.

But this isnt 1974, when Democrats scored a midterm landslide as voters punished the GOP for Richard Nixons Watergate. In capturing the thinnest possible majority on Capitol Hill a vice presidential tiebreaker in the Senate and currently a three-vote margin in the House Democrats seemingly got carried away in promoting Biden as a new FDR. That created a scenario in which instead of being rewarded for the substantial things hes done large-scale COVID-19 relief into a booming jobs market, an infrastructure bill and restoring some honor to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Biden faces a whupping for whats left undone.

The worst thing for Biden is that his biggest flops, so far, have fallen hardest on the voters who could turn the tide in the 2022 midterms with some enthusiasm, by reversing their history of low turnouts in nonpresidential years. These include the under-30 voters whove seen their biggest issues college debt, free community college, climate action the first to fall, and Black and brown voters who dont feel Democrats are going to the mat to save voting rights.

In theory, its not too late for Democrats to turn the aircraft carrier around before it sinks, but time is of the essence. Heres four potential game-changers.

1) Biden announces substantial student debt forgiveness before payments resume in February. The White House would be wise to claim the executive authority that many lawmakers and legal experts believe that Biden has to at the very minimum deliver the $10,000-per-individual debt forgiveness that he so clearly promised in his 2020 campaign. Its a boost for the economy that helps everyone. It would help, though, if Biden paired such an announcement with aid for noncollege youth, such as government help for trade schools.

2) Channel your inner LBJ to pass a voting rights bill as soon as possible. Two bills aimed at restoring voting rights the Freedom to Vote Act, and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which has already passed the House seem to have the necessary 50 votes (plus the vice president) to pass the Senate. Whats needed is a rule change that will effectively neuter the filibuster, at least on this issue. Although there are some doubters over the effectiveness of the Freedom to Vote Act, the real issue is much bigger. Democrats need to show their own voters theyll fight for them, rather than find excuses for inaction.

3) Declare a climate emergency and act accordingly. This months killer tornadoes and insane wind storms in the American heartland are more than enough of a trigger for Congress to pass a version of Build Back Better that contains whatever workable climate provisions exist within the reality of dealing with Manchin, who makes more money owning a coal company than from his day job in the Senate. But like Barack Obama before him, Biden should also be aggressive in using his executive powers to wean America off fossil fuels.

4) Scrap the initial scheme for Build Back Better to go large and go long on one big social program. Last summer, a more optimistic Democratic Party crammed an ambitious cradle-to-grave social agenda into one giant bill not because that made sense but because it was the only way to bypass the Republican filibuster. With Manchin arbitrarily imposing his own spending limits on the bill, the BBB has become a mishmosh of half measures. Take the most popular program arguably the child tax credit that is cutting child poverty in half and fully fund it over a number of years, as protection against a GOP win in 2022. (Minutes after I wrote this paragraph, Manchin went on Fox News to state his opposition to pretty much doing anything, but lets apply some pressure on the wayward West Virginian to consider ... something.)

Those four moves wouldnt squelch some lingering disappointment over what didnt get done pre-K, or paid family leave, or free community college but it would allow Democrats to run with a real track record, and as fighters for the middle-class folks who need to show up in November 2022. It also means the major disclosures about Jan. 6 and the contempt for democracy from Trump and those seeking to restore him to power wont fall on the deaf ears of rank-and-file Democrats infuriated over debacles like Bidens student loan misfire.

With the Republican Party completely off the rails, a functioning Democratic Party is indeed the best hope of saving our democratic norms. In theory, exposing the treachery of Jan. 6 and its support at the highest levels of the GOP would be enough. In reality, voters wont care about the loftier mission of preserving liberty unless the Dems get real about their everyday, bread-and-butter concerns. It means doing the things that show young people theres an actual difference between the two parties. It means scoring some goals instead of kicking it into your own net.

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If Dems want to save American democracy, they need to do these 4 things ASAP | Will Bunch - The Philadelphia Inquirer

New China Research, a think tank affiliated with Chinas Xinhua News Agency, recently released the multi-language documentary Pursuing Common Values of Humanity: Chinese Stories on Democracy, Freedom and Human Rights, chronicling stories about democracy, freedom and human rights through the lens of ordinary Chinese.

The documentarys directors explain the behind-the-scene stories.

Preface: A Common Pursuit

Narrator: Xiao Sisi, chief director

Peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom are the common values of all humankind, and the right to interpret them should belong to people of all countries. The Chinese people themselves have the greatest say in the true state of democracy, freedom and human rights in China.

For that reason, we spent nearly a year travelling through China, filming the stories of six ordinary Chinese citizens to record their lives. Through the main characters narration, the film tells their pursuit and aspiration for a better life. In their stories, we personally feel the values of democracy, freedom and human rights.

The documentary begins with a nine-year-old girl, and ends with a 90-year-old man, representing the lifespan of a human being. The Chinese people at different ages all enjoy the benefits of democracy, freedom and human rights. They are individuals, but each and everyone of them is a vivid embodiment of the abstract concepts of democracy, freedom and human rights.

In our documentary, sticking to the truth is the highest principle. We do not shy away from conflict. We believe that this makes the documentary more powerful.

We all love our country. We know that our country may not be perfect, but our pursuit of the best has never stopped. Chinas democracy, freedom, and human rights are the paths the Chinese people have chosen. We are moving forward in the direction of absolute perfection. We do not use a third-party narration because we hope that our audience can draw their own conclusions through their own observations and enjoy these authentic Chinese stories.

Story 1: Listen to the Movie

Narrated by: Xiong Lin, Tang Yang, Kong Linghang, Episode Director

The biggest wish of Chen Yuxin, an elementary school student at the Beijing School for the visually impaired, was to watch a movie.

In early September 2021, that wish came true. Together with her friends, and guided by some volunteers, Yuxin was able to watch the movie My People, My Homeland at the Tiantongyuan Cultural Arts Center in Changping District, Beijing.

Cai Yu, a 26-year-old PhD candidate at the Communication University of China and also a volunteer, said that during the intervals of dialogue and sound in the film, volunteers would describe the characters actions, expressions and surroundings, allowing the visually impaired to feel the message and emotions of the movie as much as possible.

For example, to explain the color red, they would use sun and heat. Films made like this help the visually impaired. The process isnt a simple one, however, as a two-hour film often takes volunteers a week to write the narration and four hours to record in the studio.

Since its inception in 2017, volunteers at the Communication University of Chinas Bright Cinema program have processed and produced more than 400 barrier-free films, allowing more than two million visually impaired people in China to see their works.

Story 2: Delivering Public Opinion

Narrator: Deng Chimin, Episode Director

In the bustling streets of Shanghai, courier Chai Shanshan asked many of his peers about their worries on the job for a government proposal he was researching. More than a decade ago, he came to Shanghai from his hometown in rural Hubei Province to work. Later, he was elected as a National Peoples Congress (NPC) deputy.

In China, being elected to the NPC means that you can send the opinions and suggestions of ordinary Chinese directly to the highest decision-making body and watch them become law across the country.

On 21 December 2020, Han, a 43-year-old delivery worker, died suddenly at work. His employer initially intended to pay only 2 000 yuan ($314). This incident caught Chais attention, and he crafted proposals on determining the relationship between part-time workers and employers and how to protect the rights of workers in new industries.

The relevant ministry of the central government responded to Chais proposal the next day. And in the second half of 2021, the Chinese government introduced related protective measures for delivery workers.

In China, ordinary citizens can voice their demands to the state through various channels. Among the deputies of the 13th NPC, ordinary workers and farmers like Chai account for 15.7% of all deputies.

Story 3: Slow Train

Narrator: Episode Director Xue Chen

In the era of high-speed trains with speeds of 250-350km/h, the Daliang Mountains in western China are still traversed by slow trains with an average speed of less than 40km/h. The slow trains run across the large and small mountains of Liangshan, connecting the remote mountainous area with the outside world. The total distance of the train journey is 376km, with 26 stops. The maximum fare for a ticket is 25.5 (about $4), while the minimum is 2 or 30 US cents, which has not changed for more than 30 years. For convenience, two rows of seats are removed at the ends of each carriage for stacking luggage and goods. While commuting, passengers can trade their home-raised poultry and souvenirs on board.

Today, China still keeps 81 pairs of slow trains covering 530 stations in 21 provinces, in order to ensure that people in less developed areas enjoy equal access to public services.

Chinas rapid development does not disregard the pursuit of speed, but it can be slow when needed. These slow trains will carry everyone on board towards common prosperity.

Story 4: Straw checkerboards

Narrator: Episode Directors He Shan and Huang Xiaobang

Morning light outlines the rhythmic curve of the sand dunes, as a team carrying shovels and wheat grass walk on the sand ridge.

Minqin County of Chinas Gansu province, which is located between Chinas two major deserts Badain Jaran and Tengger, has become a green barrier against sandstorms.

Ma Junhe, in his 40s, is one of the guardians of this green barrier. In 2007, Ma returned to his hometown and planted the first piece of grass square.

Straw checkerboards are a bunch of wheat grass in the shape of a square laid on the sand. People roll them into the sand with shovels, leaving 1/3 or half of the wheat grass above ground. This technique allows the wheat grass to firmly stand in the sand, and prevents the sand from being swept away by the wind. Once a sand dune has stabilised, haloxylon forests (hardy shrubs) can be planted. So far, Ma has led efforts to plant more than 30 000 acres of haloxylon forests and laid down countless straw checkerboards.

Each autumn, they lay the straw checkerboards and plant the haloxylon trees the next year. In a few years, the sand dunes will be fit for vegetable and fruit planting. Today Minqin Oasis is a vibrant community.

Story 5: Democratic Talkfests

Narrator: Episode Director Yin Xiaosheng

Wenling is a small city on Chinas east coast. It has a stunning landscape and vibrant economy. Here, a form of grassroots democracy is practised, where consultation is the norm.

Over the past 20 years, Wenling has held more than 30 000 democratic talkfests, addressing many urgent problems such as environmental pollution, worker wages, the renovation of the old town, sewage replacement and how to allocate public spending.

Similar forms of democratic talkfests are common in Chinas Zhejiang province. In Wuxing district of the city Huzhou, mediating social disputes has become a major source of democratic consultation. By involving all stakeholders, the district set up judges studios and prosecutors studios to resolve disputes. There are 40 community studios that work towards this end. In 2021, the centre resolved more than 95% of disputes through this process of democratic consultation, and the number of civil and commercial lawsuits brought to the court has dropped by 19.5% year-on-year.

Story 6: The Sunset

Narrator: Episode Director Xiong Qi

It was late in the afternoon on 5 March 2020. Liu Kai, a Wuhan doctor, was escorting Wang Xin, a Covid-19 patient in his 90s, to a CT scan. On the way, they were mesmerised by the brilliant sunset. The scene was recorded by a photographer and the photo, like the sun piercing the dark clouds, warmed countless netizens.

Thousands of miles away in Shanghai, Chinese composer Liu Jian was deeply moved by this image. The warmth that came to him inspired Liu Jian to compose the score Light of the Ark.

After the composition was completed, the music was delivered to Wang Xin. As a violinist, Wang Xin was very excited, but was unable to play as he was still recovering from illness.

When the winter was over, Wang Xin fully recovered. Liu Jian and Wang Xin finally joined together to play the heartwarming tune via video link.

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Stories of Democracy, Freedom and Human Rights, as told by ordinary Chinese citizens - Mail and Guardian

The mob attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was a shameful and tragic day. Some in Congress on the Jan. 6 congressional committee believe it represented a threat to American democracy.

Yet some of these leaders support another threat to our democracy that is arguably even greater.

Controversial Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is wanted by the United States for leaking classified government information in 2010 and 2011 that revealed potential war crimes perpetrated by the United States. The U.S. wants him tried for espionage, and, late last week, a U.K. court granted his extradition.

Assange and his defenders contend leaking secret government information to the public is what any journalist might do on a regular basis. Basic reporting.

This is not new.When The New York Times published the Pentagon Papers in 1971, which showed how the president had deceived the public about the Vietnam War, the Richard Nixon administration sued the paper. Henry Kissinger called the leaker, Daniel Ellsberg, "the most dangerous man in America." Nixon reportedly raged at his aides over Ellsberg, telling them to "destroy" that "son of a b---h" and "I don't care how you do it."

Successfullyrepresenting The New York Times then was attorney James Goodale. When former President Barack Obama was seeking to punish Assange, Goodale compared the situation to the Pentagon Papers case, telling The Guardian in 2013 "it's the very same thing ... [Y]ou've got to remember, [Chelsea] Manning's the leaker. Everyone says Assange is a leaker. He's not a leaker. He's the person who gets the information." That means "if you go after Wikileaks criminally, you go after the Times," amounting to "the criminalization of the whole process," Goodale argued.

The criminalization of journalism?

A free press is the cornerstone of any democratic society. Some will continue to argue whether the problematic Assange is actually a journalist, just as some now debate whether the Jan. 6 attack represents something greater than just the chaos of that day. But if Assange were found guilty of espionage for his actions, there is good reason to fear it would have a chilling effect on America's free press and do irreparable harm to our democracy.

Goodale warned of this very prospect back in 2013. "It's absolutely frightening," he said.

Read the original post:
The criminalization of journalism? - The Week Magazine

Before Sharon Nichols headed into the U.S. Capitol on January 6, she received a text message asking if she was worried. The president had called tens of thousands of people to D.C. for a rally promoting unfounded claims of election fraud. Hed promised it would be wild.

And I said, No, Nichols remembers. I thought that coming into the Capitol would be the safest place.

Nichols, like other Hill staffers, was mostly working from home. But she needed to come in that day to get her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. On her way to the vaccine clinic at the Rayburn House Office Building, Nichols could tell something was wrong.

I could hear Capitol Police officers kind of in distress, yelling at each other back and forth, she said. Im sure it was, you know, send help over here or there. This crowd is big, or we need backup at that location.

WATCH NOW | DEMOCRACY DIVIDED: Stories of the Capitol Riot

When she got to Rayburn, an officer told her she should probably go home. But it was her first opportunity to get the COVID-19 vaccine after a year of hell wrought by the pandemic.

Wed come off a year of this pandemic that had killed hundreds of thousands of people already, and there was finally light at the end of the tunnel, Nichols said. She decided to get her first dose.

Before she could leave the clinic, however, the U.S. Capitol Police Department sent out its first alert locking down all Capitol office buildings including the one where Nichols was getting her shot. No one would be allowed in or out.

They sent me back to my office and said, yeah, we probably arent going to be able to leave this place for a while, Nichols remembered.

At a TGIFridays restaurant nearby, three men whod met on Facebook were fueling up for then-President Donald Trumps Stop the Steal rally at the Ellipse. It was the culmination of months of lies spread by the president and his allies to cast doubt on the 2020 election, which hed lost to Joe Biden by more than 7 million votes.

The men Ronny Sandlin, Nathan DeGrave and Josiah Colt had connected over their support for Trump. Theyd met up in Tennessee and driven to D.C. together to attend the rally.

Sandlin, who organized the trip, according to federal prosecutors, had once built a successful internet marketing company and even started a non-profit organization in L.A. called The Pedal Movement to make bicycles accessible to the less fortunate.

But, Sandlin had lost his business, and his way, during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to court documents and family members, Sandlin had fallen into a depression over the past year and had turned his focus to the presidential election and calls to reverse Trumps loss.

Over a bite to eat and a beer, Sandlin explained in a video posted to social media why hed come to D.C. on January 6.

Because Im so sick and tired of people saying they believe in something and they dont stand up and fight for what they believe in, Sandlin said. I mean, no, but really, like I fight for what I believe in.

Freedom is paid for in blood, and tyranny always masquerades itself with safety and security, Sandlin concluded. Peace and love. Thanks, guys.

A short time later, he, DeGrave and Colt headed to the Capitol. Meanwhile, U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell was bracing for a fight.

Gonell is originally from the Dominican Republic. He came to the U.S. when he was 12 years old, and became an American citizen while serving in the U.S. Army.

My time in Iraq doesnt compare to everything that happened here on January 6, Gonell said.

Gonell was one of four U.S. Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers who testified before the House Select Committee to Investigate January 6th. In his testimony, and in interviews after, he said the situation at the Capitol really began to get out of control around 2 p.m. an hour after then-Vice President Mike Pence released a letter saying he could not unliterally interfere with the electoral vote count, and roughly 50 minutes after Trump ended his speech by urging his followers to march to the Capitol.

We ran fully equipped with all the civil disturbance unit gear on to help the officers who were already fighting the mob, Gonell said. There was no time to devise anything because we were just trying to help out the officers who were getting beat up already. Then we began to get beaten up ourselves.

Officers from the D.C. Police Department eventually voluntarily deployed to the Capitol to assist beleaguered USCP officers. Bodycam video released from Capitol riot cases shows those officers forcing their way through crowds as angry rioters assault them and yell, Traitors!

They arrived to find their brothers and sisters in uniform already under assault.

I got hit with wood. Poles. Flagpoles. I got sprayed with so many things. People were throwing anything they could get their hands on, Gonell said. The metal barriers, they were ripping them apart to take those pieces and use them as projectiles.

In no time at all, the situation at the Capitol had become critical. Hundreds of rioters entered the building many through a window shattered by Proud Boy Dominic Pezzola and began making their way toward the Senate Chamber, where lawmakers had a short time earlier been meeting to certify the election.

Among the first rioters to enter the building was Doug Jensen. Jensen, a self-proclaimed digital soldier of the QAnon conspiracy theory, was at the front of the mob that chased USCP Officer Eugene Goodman through the Capitol.

Goodman had moments earlier diverted Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) from heading down a hallway that would have led him into direct contact with Jensen and other rioters. He then took it upon himself to challenge the mob alone and lead them away from the area where members of Congress were hunkered down.

Video of the pursuit shows dozens of people chasing Goodman as they yell, Keep running mother******! and Hes one person, were thousands!

Some 500 yards away, Sharon Nichols had made it to her office in Rayburn.

The hard part for me was that the rest of my office was teleworking that day, she said. So, I was alone in my office. I called my mom and my sister and said, Listen, turn on the news just so you know you know whats happening. But Im okay. Im locked inside.

Nichols said she turned the lights out in her office and tried to find a balance between having the TV on loud enough that she could hear what was going on but not so loud that anyone could hear it from the outside.

I didnt want to draw attention to the fact that somebody was in there, she said. If I muted the TV I could hear people walking. I was never sure if they were police officers or other staff or the mob.

Back in the Capitol, a battalion of USCP and MPD officers was regrouping in the bowels of the building for a final stand. They were led by D.C. Police Commander Ramey Kyle.

In body-worn camera video released by the Justice Department, Kyle can be heard rallying officers before they prepare to face off against thousands of pro-Trump rioters.

We are not losing the U.S. Capitol today. Do you hear me! Kyle yells. We are not losing the U.S. Capitol.

At the front of the line of officers trying to hold the Lower West Terrace was Sgt. Aquilino Gonell.

When I started feeling like I was losing air, I came to a conclusion at a point like, OK, this could be my last hour, Gonell said. Im thinking, Im gonna die defending the Capitol. I was prepared for it.

One of the officers in Kyles battalion moved up to take Gonells spot face-to-face with rioters. That officer was D.C. Police Officer Mike Fanone. Gonell says he still feels guilty about what happened to Fanone next.

Members of the mob grabbed Fanone and dragged him into the crowd beating him savagely with metal flagpoles and stolen police batons and tasing him repeatedly. Fanone says he heard them chanting, Kill him with his own gun! As a result of the assault he suffered a concussion and lost consciousness, and it was eventually determined he had a mild heart attack. Fanones limp body was eventually grabbed and pulled back into the building by his fellow officers.

No Looking Back Now, Boys

While the war to defend the West Terrace raged on, other rioters including Ronny Sandlin, Nathan DeGrave and Josiah Colt found other ways into the Capitol.

In video released by the Justice Department, Colt can be heard urging his friends to push deeper into the building.

Lets get to the Senate. The Senate, bro. The Senate. Where they are meeting, Colt says. No looking back now, boys.

According to prosecutors, the three men were among the first rioters to arrive at the Senate door, where they found two lone USCP officers attempting to guard the entrance. In short matter, the door was breached.

No going back now! DeGrave can be heard saying, the DOJ says. You just made history, bro. Thats your seat, bro. Thats your seat!

Nearby, Colt declares, This is our house now. It is not Chinas house. This is for America. This is for the people. This is for freedom.

We need everyone f****** in here now! DeGrave yells. Take laptops, take paperwork, take everything!

By the time the mob reached the Senate, members of Congress had already been evacuated. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Capitol, another life-and-death battle was being waged.

At the door to the Speakers Lobby, a small group of officers was trying to hold off dozens of rioters while elected officials were still rushing to safety. In a video captured by John Earl Sullivan, of Utah now charged himself in the case rioters can be seen smashing in the window of one of the doors. One rioter, Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt, then begins to climb through.

Moments later, U.S. Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd fires a single shot striking Babbitt in the shoulder.

In the video, officers can be heard yelling at the crowd to get back while they work to provide Babbitt with medical aid.

We cannot get enough people to move to get her out of the building! one officer says. Shes bleeding out on the floor.

As news spread that a rioter had been shot, those bent on violence seemed emboldened. It was not long afterward that the war at the West Terrace reached a new level.

In body-worn camera video from four different officers who were attacked holding the entrance, bodies can be seen strewn on the ground as a bearded man in a Michigan sweatshirt now identified as Justin Jersey charges and attacks officers, trying to rip away their batons.

The small group of officers was brutalized with anything the mob could find, including flagpoles, sticks, and projectiles launched through the air like incoming missiles.

The DOJ says former CrossFit instructor Jack Wade Whitton, of Georgia, can be seen beating police with a crutch and then stomping on an officer while they cried out for help.

The officer, identified in court documents as A.W., was forced to scratch, claw and crawl to save himself.

Then, a Pennsylvania man identified by the DOJ as U.S. Marine Corps veteran Michael Lopatic joins the assault on police. Hes followed by a deputy sheriff from Tennessee named Ronald McAbee. McAbee can be seen in a video standing over the lifeless body of another rioter, Rosanne Boyland.

The D.C. Medical Examiners Office eventually determined Boyland died of an acute amphetamine overdose. Along with Babbitt, Boyland was one of five people who lost their lives amid the riot. The three others, among them USCP Officer Brian Sicknick, all died from natural causes, according to autopsies.

It was nightfall before police had pushed the remaining rioters back. Sharon Nichols had spent eight frightening hours alone until the lockdown was lifted.

I knew I was after curfew, so I kept my badge on or displayed so that people could see that I wasnt causing trouble, she said. So the first thing I did was, you know, I tweeted that I got home, I'm safe. I called my family. Going to sleep that night was tough. Because of all the adrenaline of the day, but then also it's sinking in and realizing that it'll have consequences for years that people died that day.

I cried, Nichols said. I cried several times. And then you try to process it. And Im talking to friends and thinking about the repercussions down the road. How many years would we be talking about this?

After a 22-hour day, Sgt. Aquilino Gonell made it home himself.

I was crying like I never cried before, he said.

When he got home, his wife, Monica, was there waiting for him.

I put the blanket over myself and gave her a big hug for 20 minutes, he said. I couldnt believe that my fellow citizens attacked us. I couldnt believe that. They attacked the police. I couldnt believe that in America this was happening.

For Gonell and other officers who defended the Capitol on January 6, the mental and physical scars are still healing. But, he says, there are good days too. Like the day he first walked on his own after surgery to remove metal plates and screws in his foot from injuries caused by rioters.

When he took that step, his 10-year-old son Emmanuel was there cheering him every step of the way.

I told him, people will read about what I did and what the other officers did, Gonell said. I told him he should be proud because I did what I had to do to keep the system that we have in place. And when I said that to him, he was like, well, if that ever comes in the history books and Im studying it, or they bring it up in class, Im going to say, Thats my dad! Thats my dad and Im proud of him. That felt good.

After five months behind bars, rioter Doug Jensen was released from pretrial detention. As a condition of his release, Jensen was prohibited from accessing the internet or using internet-connected devices. On the very first home visit, probation officers found him in his garage watching MyPillow CEO Mike Lindells cyber symposium on election fraud conspiracies. He was sent back to jail, where he remains while he awaits trial on felony charges of obstruction of justice and assaulting police.

Josiah Colt pleaded guilty in July to one felony count of obstruction of an official proceeding. He faces a recommended sentence of five years in prison at sentencing. As part of his plea agreement, Colt agreed to cooperate with the governments prosecution of other rioters.

Colts friends, Ronald Sandlin and Nathan DeGrave, remain behind bars while they await trial on multiple felony charges for assaulting police and obstruction. A federal judge this week denied their request to have the obstruction charge thrown out. They face up to two decades in prison if convicted.

Sharon Nichols has returned to working in the same office where she hid for hours on January 6.

U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell got the opportunity to share his story in person to members of Congress at the inaugural meeting of the January 6th Committee. He was joined by U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and D.C. Police Officers Mike Fanone and Daniel Hodges. Gonell returned to active duty on November 3.

In August, President Joe Biden signed legislation awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to all of the officers who helped defend the U.S. Capitol Building on January 6.

To date, more than 700 people have now been arrested from nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the Capitol riot. That includes more than 220 defendants for assaults on law enforcement. More than 110 defendants charged in the case have pleaded guilty to charges ranging from parading in a Capitol building to assaulting police with a dangerous weapon. The longest sentence handed down to date will have a Florida man, Robert Scott Palmer, serve more than five years behind bars.

We're tracking all of the arrests, charges and investigations into the January 6 assault on the Capitol. Sign up for ourCapitol Breach Newsletterhere so that you never miss an update.

Original post:
Democracy Divided: The Stories of the January 6 Capitol riot - WUSA9.com

The issue of our age is: Why are so-called liberals incapable of recognizing the true enemies of democracy, and how far will they go to delude themselves?

They are the modern equivalent of the Inquisition, that group of know-it-all Catholic clerics who actually knew next to nothing but were perfectly willing to bet their eternal souls on their dogma. They had no problem locking up Galileo or Copernicus for claiming the earth revolved around the sun or burning Giordano Bruno at the stake for daring to be right about distant stars and the infinite universe.

Likewise, the nightly inquisition that is known as MSNBC, or the congressional inquisition known as the January 6 Select Committee, are each betting the soul of the country on their political dogmas. Rachel Maddow, Joy Reid, and Liz Cheney wont be happy until the skin of Donald Trump sizzles. If hes innocent of insurrection, then he can prove it by surviving a third impeachment, damn it!

But what is so weird is how out of touch with reality these inquisitors are. All evidence of Trumps innocence is ignored, and most evidence of his guilt is manufactured. Take for example a fact check done by Glenn Kessler at the Washington Post last week titled No, Trump did not order 10,000 troops to secure the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Kessler reports a conversation between TV personality Sean Hannity and Mark Meadows, Trumps final White House chief of staff, in which Hannity says Trump requested increased National Guard support prior to the Jan. 6 protest at the Capitol. Meadows then confirms that Trump wanted 10,000 National Guard troops assigned to make sure that everything was safe and secure.

Kessler says those are false claims that have been debunked, but apparently, like other liberals, he doesnt understand the meaning of words. What Kessler proves sort of is that Trump didnt say I order you to provide National Guard troops, but what he also proves incontrovertibly is that Trump did request that the guard, 10,000 troops to be exact, be deployed prior to the riot that broke out the day the Electoral College votes were opened by Congress.

Citing the account of a reporter embedded with acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, Kessler confirms the story told by Meadows and Trump consistently: Trump wanted the National Guard deployed and expected it to happen.

The president, Miller recalled, asked how many troops the Pentagon planned to turn out the following day. Were like, Were going to provide any National Guard support that the District requests, Miller responded. And [Trump] goes, Youre going to need 10,000 people. No, Im not talking bullsh--. He said that. And were like, Maybe. But you know, someones going to have to ask for it.

Moreover, Kessler then discovers that Trump had a meeting with Miller and Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which was subsequently recounted by the departments inspector general. Again, Trump is seen asking for National Guard troops.

Mr. Miller and GEN Milley met with the President at the White House at 5:30 p.m. The primary topic they discussed was unrelated to the scheduled rally. GEN Milley told us that at the end of the meeting, the President told Mr. Miller that there would be a large number of protesters on January 6, 2021, and Mr. Miller should ensure sufficient National Guard or Soldiers would be there to make sure it was a safe event. Gen Milley told us that Mr. Miller responded, Weve got a plan and weve got it covered.

Kessler, the fact checker, claims that this paragraph proves that Trump never gave an order that the Guard should be deployed. Of course, Hannity and Meadows never said that the president gave an order. They said he had requested 10,000 troops. But Kessler is the one who needs to be fact-checked. His claim that no direct order is mentioned is essentially contradicted by the language used by the inspector general.

GEN Milley told us the President told Mr. Miller that there would be a large number of protesters on January 6, 2021, and Mr. Miller should ensure sufficient National Guard or Soldiers would be there to make sure it was a safe event. [Emphasis added.]

If the commander-in-chief tells a Cabinet officer and a military subordinate that something should be done, that is an order, no mistake. And when Miller responded, Weve got a plan and weve got it covered, that was a lie and insubordination.

But yet, so far as we know, no one in Congress or the Justice Department is pursuing charges against Miller, nor for that matter has the Washington Post disciplined fact checker Kessler for dereliction of duty. But if we were truly concerned about threats to our democracy, then two at the top of the list would be a compromised media and a rogue military.

But the left isnt concerned about saving democracy; it is concerned about destroying Trump because, even wounded, he is the Samson who can pull down the entire corrupt superstructure of the uni-party ruling elites who are so out of touch that they cant even conceive of a stolen election.

Think about that. According to the left, democracy is put at risk because millions of people have questions about the 2020 election. It never occurs to them that the far greater risk is to deny the people the right to question the institutions that govern on their behalf. Indeed, Democrats turn everything on its head, and insist that concerns about corruption in our electoral process prove instead that the whistleblower is trying to destroy the system rather than save it.

But if the polls are to be believed, these champions of democracy may soon have to answer for their arrogance. Whether Donald Trump runs for president again in 2024 or not, we the people have a right to make decisions for ourselves with or without the approval of the know-it-alls who would dictate their beliefs to the rest of us.

With any luck, Trumps grand inquisitors may soon find out they are not the center of the political universe after all, and truth will prevail once again, just as it did for Galileo and Copernicus.

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Why the Jan. 6 Inquisition Is the Real Enemy of Democracy - RealClearPolitics