this post was submitted on 03 Aug 2023
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[–] [email protected] 282 points 1 year ago (9 children)

A coup. That's what was attempted. Everyone may not call it that now, but that's what history will call what Trump attempted.

Trump has to be held accountable and punished severely as a deterrent for the future.

It took 244 years for our first nearly successful coup. The next attempt may be much much sooner.

[–] [email protected] 144 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I heard this a couple years ago: The single most important predictor of a successful coup, is a failed coup

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

And he knows it too.

[–] [email protected] 62 points 1 year ago (5 children)

Another unfortunate thing is that surely rivals and enemies of the US noticed how unprepared we were for an event like that, and while as various pundits and news organizations pointed out, our institutions did prevail and were strengthened, they sure weren't rock solid. And we're still having to deal with this orange-painted douchebag, who is not only not in prison, but almost as popular as before and running for president. But anyway, it's a concern that someone like Russia or China could sponsor and a stage a coup by manipulating the crew of violent mouth breathers into it. I mean, I'd be surprised if foreign influence wasn't involved in the last one.

[–] [email protected] 37 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

We know that it was.

Or did you think that the Saudi royal family was just paying kushner 2 billion for an excellent blowjob?

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I assumed that they bought state secrets from Orange Julius. I’m not sure they have a particular interest in destabilizing the US as much as say, that one guy who is basically 2 inches from war with NATO.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

the Saudis will do what's best for the Saudis. Including destabilizing the US if it means they can continue being assholes on the world stage.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Why not? Destabilize the US, let them invade Iran under false pretense, like Russia did in Ukraine, rely on Saudis and maybe Israel as "strategic partners to stabilize the region", so they can control the middle east and establish their theocracies. Meanwhile the weakened US relies on more ressources and funding from the Saudis so they make big money and gain influence in the US economy.

The capitalist elites are happy to sell out America. Americans are easy to get into another invasion with lots of war crimes, heck Hillary Clinton was eager to attack Iran sooner than later.

Keep in mind that the 9/11 attackers were mostly Saudis and ISIS was largely funded from there. If they think it'll benefit them, they'll burn the US to the ground.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The people who stormed the capital were able to do so because intelligence was WILLFULLY ignored. Trump and his appointees downplayed the risk of violence and denied reinforcing the capital.

Without those loyal to Trump ignoring refusing to increase security for the capital, the storming of Congress would not have been successful.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

The absence of the vast majority of the Capitol Police (in stark contrast to, for example, the Black Lives Matter protests the summer before) was part of the coup attempt.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

Don't rule Saudi Arabia out either there.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago

I wouldn't say anything was strengthened.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Im willing to bet that this involved assistance from the Russians.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 1 year ago (2 children)

A coup. That's what was attempted

It pisses me off that I continually hear people call it a "riot".
It wasn't a "riot", that's a republican rebranding of what happened that day. It wasn't a bunch of people that got pissed off and suddenly decided to start breaking things.
It was a planned and coordinated attack on our nation's capitol with the specific goal of stopping the peaceful transfer of power and installing an unelected individual as head of government by any means necessary, up to and including the attempted assassination of members of both houses of Congress.
That's a coup d'etat, Not a riot. Normalizing the phrase "capitol riot" is rewriting history.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

The attack on the capitol was just a small piece of the coup. It was a delay/scare/chaos tactic to use the alternative electoral certificates. There is no doubt or subjective interpretation here, this was a coup attempt, and there is a long trail of evidence due to the many layers of government they had to go through to make it happen.

It is past time caring how the members of this hostile faction are calling and interpreting it. They've been denying their intentions, crimes, and reality for a god-damned long time. They're even denying the weather of the day. You're right, and don't dignify their rebranding with a response, just call it what it is.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

riot /'rī′ət'/ noun -

  1. When minorities peaceably assemble to petition for their civil rights to be respected
  2. When conservatives attempt to violently overthrow the government to install a dictator
[–] [email protected] 33 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

The Cline Center is responsible for categorizing and describing coups and what kind of coups those coups were. They called it a self-coup attempt. It was a coup. It's not up for debate. They are the authority on whether or not something is/was a coup/coup attempt.

https://clinecenter.illinois.edu/coup-detat-project/statement_jan.27.2021

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

I had not heard this before, thanks for sharing! Fascinating.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago

Hitler got a slap on the wrist for his first coup attempt (nine months in prison), we all know what happened next.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)

However, there have been less successful coup attempts in US history. The only other major one: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Plot

Less coup-y, but more successful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooks_Brothers_riot

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Hmm... I wonder what those all have in common?

(Also, "fun" fact related to the Brooks Brothers Riot: no less than three of the lawyers who worked on the Bush side of the subsequent Bush v. Gore case are now Supreme Court justices.)

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

And we're still in the midst of that coup.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

How soon is going to depend a lot on what consequences Trump faces.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago