Republicans are gaslighting America about Trump's coup: Only impeachment can set the record straight

[marmar]

Republicans are gaslighting America about Trump's coup: Only impeachment can set the record straight
Impeachment establishes a formal record, making it harder for the right to pressure media to downplay January 6

By AMANDA MARCOTTE
JANUARY 11, 2021 5:51PM


(Salon) There is no doubt Donald Trump incited the insurrection on January 6. It happened largely in public and is recorded for posterity.

....(snip)....

None of this is subtle or confusing. Unsurprisingly, however, right-wing media figures — who want to continue to push conspiracy theories and agitate their audiences with insurrectionist talk, but don't want to face consequences for it — have already begun the process of gaslighting about Wednesday's event, insisting that it's being blown out of proportion and shouldn't be treated like the insurrection that it was.

Media Matters has a good round-up of the various strategies being employed by right wing media to spin Wednesday's events as something less serious than an attempted coup spurred on by Trump himself. Fox News' Tucker Carlson is reframing the insurrectionists as the real victims, subject to imaginary liberal incursions on vaguely defined "freedom." Laura Ingraham is working the "both sides do it" angle, falsely equating random and disorganized acts of vandalism during Black Lives Matter protests with the Trump crowd's direct attempt to overthrow the U.S. government and likely murder congressional leaders. Sean Hannity is still working the "antifa did it!" lie, even after the FBI announced no evidence linking anti-fascist activists to the Trump-motivated mob. And Rush Limbaugh is denying that the insurrection was violent, saying it was simply people taking "selfies," ignoring the fact that five people died, including a Capitol police officer who was beat to death by someone wielding a fire extinguisher. These tactics of deflection also ignore that the mob clearly intended more mayhem— rioters weren't carrying weapons and wearing armor for their health — and it was only a matter of luck that things didn't get worse.

....(snip)....

But understanding that Pence would rather let Trump send mobs after him to kill him than to invoke the 25th is not the only reason to move swiftly on impeachment. Even if Pence was to act — and he won't — impeachment is necessary to create a legal and historical record underscoring the truth: Trump incited a mob and sent them after Congress in an attempt to overthrow the U.S. government. ........(more)

https://www.salon.com/2021/01/11/republicans-are-gaslighting-america-about-trumps-coup-onlyimpeachment-can-set-the-record-straight/

[Skittles]

1. repukes impeach for blow jobs, not attempted coups

[SheltieLover]

2. This!👆

[KayF]

3. exactly, they can say anything in the media

but it's different in court.

A great example is making all kinds of fraud charges in press conferences, and then in court telling the judge "this is not a fraud case."

[C_U_L8R]

4. If Republicans want to delay this

We can really slow it down with excruciating public investigations into every complicit, corrupt, traitorous act. They will never wash this stink off.

[badboy67]

5. I saw some of this rightwing revisionism on The Hill.

Totally downplaying the obvious. Altering facts in real time. Gaslighting. Solely to rehabilitate the GOP "brand."

They're not fooling anybody except those who want to be fooled.

[Midnight Writer]

6. Yep, we need a documented record so they can't play their weasel games