Inside Out

Now that we've hit another Jan. 6 Insurrection anniversary, and I suppose also because now Trump is facing four indictments, including one about the Insurrection, and also because several states so far have ruled that Trump is ineligible to be on their ballot, it seems that the latest talking point for Republicans is the old chestnut that Jan. 6 was supposedly not an Insurrection by Trump supporters, who were only there as tourists to picnic, but rather an "Inside Job" by the FBI or 'Antifa' or Democrats who all or individually or whatever were reeeeeeally the ones rioting and protesting and causing all the damage.

Every time I see that argument made to a reporter, I dearly wish the journalist would ask one simple question -- "What did the FBI or 'Antifa' or Democrats hope to gain by staging a protest to block the certification of the votes that would elect Joe Biden president??"

I know that the GOP base today has become adept at coming up with convoluted or conspiratorial answers to explain pretty much anything.  The standard explanation, of course, useful for so many situations is - "Trump didn't mean that, he was just joking."  (Trump has to be the least funny president in U.S. history, joking that much without a single laugh.  Speaking of which, I'm still trying to figure out what the punchline is for "I want to be a dictator on Day One."  Seriously, what politician cracks jokes about wanting to be a dictator???)  Just the other day, I heard a Trump supporter asked about Trump promising to build a wall on the Mexican border, but not doing so.  Her explanation was that that was intentional -- that Trump actually left all long empty stretches between parts of existing wall in order to trick Mexicans into going through them so that they could then be stopped and arrested by border guards lying in wait.  Yes, really.  The head just spins.

(By the way, left out of the whole "I will build a wall" promise is that that isn't what it ever was.  His promise was that he not only would build a wall…but also make Mexico pay for it.  That inconvenient part seems to have slipped through the cracks.  Cracks where, no doubt, border guards are waiting…)

But for every twisted explanation Republicans tie themselves in knots desperately trying to justify something horrible that Trump or their party has said or done, for the life of me I don't know what the GOP answer is to -

"What did the FBI or 'Antifa' or Democrats hope to gain by staging a protest to block the certification of the votes that would elect Joe Biden president??"

(Hey, I think they'd have a hard enough time just explaining who "Antifa' is and where they are based, or even who their leader is, given that it's no more an organization than "environmentalists" is.  Or just explain something simple like what is "Antifa's" phone number?  Or even merely explain what the name "Antifa" stands for.  And that after being told it's short for "anti-fascist," explain what it is that they find wrong about being anti-fascist?)

But even if they decide to ignore "Antifa," too befuddled by what it is and why they're against anti-fascists, and instead choose to focus their attention only on the FBI and Democrats, I still don't have a clue what their answer is to -- 

"What did the FBI or Democrats hope to gain by staging a protest to block the certification of the votes that would elect Joe Biden president?"

The only conceivable answer I can think of that makes any sense is…"Um, er, ah, hmmm, um, ummm."  That I would accept from them as a rational answer.  Because rioting to stop the certification of Joe Biden can only mean the rioters wanted Trump to be elected.  And that obviously doesn't make the slightest sense for Democrats.  And if you attribute it to the FBI, that defeats the entire purpose for Republicans crying in wounded outrage that the Insurrection was an "Inside job" by the FBI on behalf of trying to help them.

The question is also problematic for Republicans to answer when you remember (since it pretty much gets left out of their accusation) that the only members of Congress who voted to block the certification of votes were…Republicans!

Which brings us back to the question and dearly wishing that reporters would ask anyone who tries to cry in angst that the Jan. 6 riot and Insurrection was an "Inside job" by the FBI, 'Antifa' and the Democrats --

"What did the FBI or 'Antifa' or Democrats hope to gain by staging a protest to block the certification of the votes that would elect Joe Biden president?"

Okay, there's one other answer that makes sense.  It's --

"Oh, sorry, by 'Inside job," I meant by Trump and Republicans, who were actually on the inside."