Much ado about nothing. That would be the main comment to US Capitol Police measures over Saturday’s “Justice for J6” rally outside the fenced-off US Capitol.
All that massive security apparatus created with heavy law enforcement presence of the police joined by other local and federal law enforcement agencies, road closures, layers of fencing, National Guard corps on standby, helicopters buzzing overhead and a cavalry lying in wait and…. 400 to 450 people inside the protest area.
Apart enticing mocking comments online, the outsize presence of the news media and police forces to monitor the event have only made a huge favour to the event organizers and the pro-Trump crowd, who stressed all of the attention will only bring more eyes to their cause.
One of the rally organizers and former Trump campaign staffer, Matt Braynard, has even asked for a round of applause for police officers when opening the rally.
They protested the arrests for non-violent offenses surrounding Jan. 6, arguing those people have been jailed too long, are facing charges as “political prisoners” and have been mistreated and denied their constitutional rights.
Though many from the congressional GOP have expressed the same concerns regarding the treatment of the people arrested after Jan. 6 tumult, none of them attended the Saturday’s event, but organizers said they’re not much surprised by that considering the pressure from House Minority Speaker Kevin McCarthy, blaming him of being out of touch with the Republican base.
Some blamed the law attendance and the absence of the lawmakers to the fact that former President Trump did not endorse the rally as well as the unsubstantiated warning from some groups that the event was actually an FBI sting operation designed to entrap Trump’s staunchest allies.
Those arrested in January will now be joined by a few more since Saturday’s protest resulted with the arrest of four people- two with weapons and another two with outstanding warrants.
Be the first to comment