Still A Day of Infamy
Re-elected, not exonerated.
Let’s be clear about one thing: Donald Trump has never been exonerated for the crime he committed on January 6th, for the vile conspiracy he orchestrated, or for the intent to corrupt and destroy the results of a free and fair election.
We owe it to history—and to future generations—to remember how that day stained our democracy and exposed the dangerous path Trump led his followers down with his corrupt actions.
January 6th taught us that the guardrails, norms, and institutions we were told would hold firm…didn’t. The fabled protection of providence that had spared America from its worst instincts failed.
Instead, we witnessed a mob bent on subverting the peaceful transfer of power. Politicians who previously assured us that our democracy could withstand any onslaught suddenly found themselves cowering as chaos reigned in the Capitol’s halls.
At this moment, there is a profound arrogance within the MAGA right over Trump’s impending return to the Oval Office. To them, reelection wipes the slate clean—that’s their twisted version of absolution. But it’s one more illustration of their radical, post-conservative character: they can’t or won’t see the harm January 6th inflicted on America’s national reputation and honor.
There’s an uncomfortable truth we still refuse to confront: a significant slice of our citizens no longer believe in the Constitution, the rule of law, the peaceful transfer of power, or the continuation of this Republic. The greatest trick the MAGA devil ever pulled was convincing the media this is all about economic anxiety and culture war: it’s about competing visions of America, and MAGA’s vision is dark, dangerous, and authoritarian.
A constitutional republic based on representative democracy isn’t hot enough for them. It’s a weak system in their minds, insufficiently flush with Trumpian testosterone.
Instead, they yearn for an autocratic strongman—Dear Leader handing down orders by fiat. All the battles to come—legislative, legal, political—boil down to whether we treat January 6th as a moral good or an unforgivable sin.
Donald J. Trump’s reentry into the White House in a few short days, propelled by grievance politics and revisionist history, might seem like a vindication in MAGA-world.
Reelection does not absolve him of complicity in the events of January 6th. It doesn’t erase the tidal wave of lies, the sham legal maneuvers, the rallies, the tweets, or the calls to “fight like hell.” It doesn’t expunge the rhetoric that ignited that tinderbox of rage.
Endorsing the idea that victory in another election equals absolution is worse than rewriting history—it’s a moral travesty.
The argument that Trump’s return to the presidency somehow proves the January 6th Committee was just political theater is laughable and dangerous. The absence of immediate legal consequences—investigations and prosecutions snuffed out for purely political reasons—doesn’t translate into innocence.
Historians will spill plenty of ink and electrons on Merrick Garland’s failure to use his authority as Attorney General to pursue charges against Trump and his co-conspirators the instant he assumed office. We’ll be paying the price for that inaction for decades.
We know what January 6th truly was: an attack on our Capitol, the only successful mass terrorist assault on it in modern history. We all saw the chaos.
We saw the brutal violence against Capitol Police and D.C. Metro officers, the smashed windows, and the terror in the eyes of the lawmakers who scrambled to safety. Too many of those same lawmakers now pretend it was a jovial tourist visit. Confederate flags defiled the sacred halls of American governance, a stark reminder of the depth of our national divides. We saw the Camp Auschwitz shirts and the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys, and other Trump militants.
They can’t see or recognize the shame they brought on this nation. Reelection is not a holy pardon that wipes away that shame; it’s merely a symptom of a party and a movement that can’t feel it
Trump’s pledge to pardon or commute the sentences of those convicted for their actions on January 6th is the final, brazen insult to our nation. It spits on the very idea of consequences—on the rule of law that he and his allies claim to champion.
For any patriot, January 6th will remain a day of infamy.
Today, I am heartsick. Never giving up, but heartsick and sick to my stomach. I am angry at the folks who voted for this, willingly or otherwise. I know that many who did are simply uninformed and disengaged. I have a friend who voted for him because "I was raised as a conservative", and she has no idea that these are not conservatives. No idea. I am 64, and I fear I will not see the damage wrought undone, as it will take decades. Today I grieve; tomorrow I fight back again.
For the rest of my life, arguably with more years behind me than ahead of me, Merrick Garland will forever be on my shit list. I’ll tell Mitch McConnell to make room in that particular boat. He also failed in his duty at the first impeachment.