A Rock and a Hard Place

​As I prepare to turn out the lights on Thursday as we near midnight, the Senate has not yet voted on the bill to create a January 6 Commission.  But it certainly seems likely that there won't be 10 Republican senators willing to support an investigation into the insurrection which attempted to overthrow the U.S. government in which all senators present that day had their lives at risk, as well.  

So, yeah, hey, why would they want to support such an investigation...?

(Yes, it's possible that between now and then that 20 percent of Republicans will find their soul and patriotism and vote "Yes."  But possible and probable are two different fish.) 

The thing that's weird about this -- other than the whole, y'know, "soul and patriotism and their own lives at risk thing" -- is that voting "Yes" seems to be the best option for them.

And, yes, I do understand why their voting "No."  They think it's in their party's best interest not to have an investigation because of what it might uncover.  The thing is, that's not too hard to figure out.  After all, it's the basic, "No, please, don't open that door and look inside, I beg of you, no, there's nothing in there, really, nothing to see, just please -- please! -- don't look inside" concept that everyone pretty much gets.  So, when it comes around to the mid-term elections...and the 2024 election...it's incredibly likely that every Democrat running will remind voters of this. And it's going to be a very bad look for Republicans.

But that's not the main reason this is weird.  That's just a basic given.

The weird thing is that the Commission would be totally bipartisan.  No one in Congress would be on it, and Republicans would have an equal say in how it was put together and run.  And they're saying "No" to that.  Because...well, we know.

But the thing is, by voting "No," that won't likely put an end to an investigation.  It seems probable that if there is no January 6 Commission, then Nancy Pelosi will put together a Special House Committee to look into the January 6 insurrection.  And if she does that, Democrats will control the rules for it.  Republicans will participate, to be clear, but they will participate as the minority party.  The set up and organization will be done by Democrats.  And this Special Committee will look into the same events and put out their own findings, just as the Commission would have done.  The only difference is that Democrats will control it all.  And that's a huge difference, as far as differences go.

Now, it's possible that Speaker Pelosi won't call for a Special House Committee.  And if she does, it's likely that Republicans would try to disrupt it -- which would be very bad look, since the whole point is to investigate the insurrection which most everyone saw and was horrified by.  And whatever findings the Special Committee comes up with, Republicans will cry that it's just political.

The problem is that if they find anything damning -- and given that this was an insurrection, it seems pretty likely that they'll find something damning... -- it will be...well, damning.  No matter how much Republicans scream and cry "Politics!!", the findings may well be horrible for them.  And horrible on a matter of insurrection to overthrown the government.  Which, if you're crying "Politics!!" is probably the wrong thing to cry when you were on the side of a political insurrection.

So, that's what's weird.

The best I can guess is that Republicans and their fellow elected QAnon associates are hedging their bets that if they do block the bipartisan January 6 Commission, whatever comes -- whether a House Special Committee run by Democrats...or no Special Committee and it all just fades away, except for the unending reminder that they blocked an investigation in to the insurrection to overthrow the government-- will be better.

And maybe it will be.  Though "better" is the wrong way to look at it.  "Less horrible" is more accurate.

And maybe it will actually be worse.  Or, to phrase it properly, more horrible.

Because in the end, whatever happened with the January 6 insurrection to overthrow the government, the elected members of the Republican Party enabled it all, supported it in their subsequent votes and continue to in their actions, and are complicit.