Treats them with the kiddest of kid gloves

Yeah, there is an impeachment trial going on. I’m not watching, though I’ll read and maybe comment on a few summary articles. Or related articles. Such as: Kerry Eleveld of Daily Kos reported several polls (as combined by FiveThirtyEight) show 53% support for the nasty guy being convicted. That’s up since Jan. 20. 55% support the nasty guy being permanently banned from holding any future office. Never mind that the first has to happen to get to the second. The trial opened with a video intercutting the rally the morning of January 6th and the violence at the Capitol later that afternoon. It was a way of relating the two and reminding senators that they were the target of the mob. Leah McElrath tweeted that video. She write that every American should watch it, then listed several content warnings. It’s here if you want to watch it. I didn’t. McElrath added:

Trump’s relative silence isn’t indicative of acceptance. His silence is indicative of planning revenge. Malignant narcissists’ response to loss is to regroup, wait for an opening, and attack again.

As part of the nasty guy rally on the morning of January 6th a video was shown to the crowd. Jason Stanley of Just Security explained how that video fits fascist propaganda. The third image in the film is the hillside Hollywood sign. Why that in a video about election fraud? It introduced the idea that the Jews, who supposedly control Hollywood, also would control the US government if it wasn’t for Dear Leader. The Jews in control of the movie industry and just about everything else is a central idea of German fascist propaganda. Later images of the video show Joe Biden with a blank stare, Nancy Pelosi flanked by (implying she is controlled by) Jewish House members. Everything Democrats touched is shown leading leading to bleakness, loss, and destruction. Everything Dear Leader touched is shown as healthy, vibrant, and wonderful. Definitely propaganda. Definitely fascist. Definitely part of the incitement to insurrection. Matt Negrin, host of Hardball on MSNBC tweeted:

Today [Feb. 7] every major network invited on a Republican senator who spread the racist Big Lie: Lindsey Graham, Roger Wicker, Bill Cassidy and Rand Paul. None of the hosts even *mentioned* that they lied to overturn the election. CBS, ABC, NBC and Fox are erasing and rewriting history.

Negrin the lists how each senator has contributed to the Big Lie and how nicely they were treated on air.

All of these Republicans are bad-faith actors. They willingly participated in spreading a lie for the sole purpose of overturning the election. Any rational person would assume they are going to continue to lie about everything. And every major network today said "come on over." … It sucks that there are only like two Republican senators who didn't spread the Big Lie, but the message that the other networks clearly send is that they don't care if you lie — you can always lie on our show.

Walter Einenkel and Marissa Higgens, both of Kos posted separately about two different people who told their stories about being sucked into, then finding their way out of, QAnon. One thing they had in common: If a person watches one conspiracy theory video the social media platforms have algorithms designed to serve up more. The more one clicks on “like” the more videos will be served up. Einenkel talked about Ashley Vanderbilt. She was a passive Republican, voting that way because she was raised to do so. As the pandemic economy worsened she lost her job and became depressed. She was isolated and spent time searching online. Einenkel wrote these videos can be convincing if one can’t tell the difference between facts and strawman arguments, especially if the arguments create the illusion of a big secret about to be revealed. Higgens wrote about Melissa Rein Lively, who fell into QAnon because information about the pandemic was so inconsistent. She was also terrified of the collapsing economy. In a report from a couple weeks ago (things can stay in my browser tabs for quite a while) Tina Vasquez of Kos Prism discussed how the anti-abortion movement fed the Capitol insurrection. Jordyn Close is a reproductive justice advocate in Ohio. As she watched the news of the insurrection she noticed several familiar faces. These were white men who spend their time harassing people outside abortion clinics – when they’re not trying to overthrow the government. Close was not at all surprised to see them. She had her colleagues around the country have known the threat of violence for decades. Law enforcement dismiss their concerns even as abortion clinics are the primary target of domestic terrorism. Vasquez explained:

Abortion stigma is the primary reason why few in the media or American public listen to abortion advocates when they warn of the violence that right-wing movements are capable of. But now that the nation has seen this violence firsthand, advocates are waiting to see if it will change anything. … Many reproductive justice advocates have argued that the anti-abortion movement is a white supremacist movement, but what’s certain is that in recent years the anti-abortion movement’s many iterations have made inroads with extreme right-wing groups—including militia movements and white supremacist groups.

Because law enforcement ignores abortion violence the activists have learned to keep themselves safe. That includes groups like Abortion Access Front amassing a database of anti abortion extremists. And they identified at least a dozen extremists at the Capitol. Some of them have ties with militia movements and have been building bridges with white supremacists. They claim they are non violent, but use violent imagery in their rhetoric. Katie Quinonez executive director of Women’s Health Center of West Virginia said:

I certainly hope the general public is waking up to the fact that the anti-abortion movement is about far-right white supremacist ideals—they don’t care about pregnant people, they don’t care about babies or families. They care about controlling people seeking health care, LGBTQ folks, and people of color. When someone is aggresively anti-abortion, it’s not just a matter of having a different opinion than you. It’s deeply rooted in white supremacist values.

Vasquez wrote:

Close told Prism that she wants the public to understand that anti-abortion activists are becoming “more radicalized” and normalizing the idea that violence against providers and clinic staff is justifiable. The threat of violence is reaching a boiling point, she said, and it still seems like only abortion advocates are taking it seriously.

Kelsea McLain coordinates the North Carolina clinic escort group Triangle Abortion Access Coalition. She noted…

There’s a direct correlation between the way that insurrectionists were treated at the Capitol and the way members of the anti-abortion movement are treated outside of clinics where they harass patients.

And the way they are treated is a lot of inaction by law enforcement. McLain said:

They truly do whatever they want; they break whatever rules they want. They’re as abusive as they want to be, and they know that nothing will ever happen to them because of it. Law enforcement treats them with the kiddest of kid gloves, so of course they went to D.C. and stormed the Capitol and thought nothing would ever happen to them.

Vasquez added they were so confident nothing would happen they livestreamed their crimes. They are emboldened. McLain said:

They were let into the Capitol by the police, and they’re let into the sanctity of our clinic space every day by the police. Sometimes we see the cops high-five antis or shake their hands or pray with them. The truth is that every day, the police are protecting anti-abortion harassment in ways that violate people’s constitutional right to access abortion in every state around the country. It’s not just a problem here in North Carolina or in southern states. There is an epidemic of law enforcement enabling what I think will inevitably be the next domestic terrorist incident at a clinic.