January 6 was a act of sedition

Opinion echo letter published in InForUm in Fargo, North Dakota:

Fox "Fake" News and other crazy rightwing media have characterized the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol as "legitimate political discourse." (Not!)

This howling right wing insurrectionist is not engaged in legitimate political discourse.

                                                   

Webster's dictionary defines "discourse" as reasoned, often formal, communication of information and ideas. The events of January 6 were mob mayhem--anything but discourse.

Likewise, by smashing their way into the Capitol building, doing heavy damage, violently assaulting the uniformed guards, and gravely threatening the vice president and Congressional legislators, the assailants cannot make any claim to legitimacy.

Worse yet, motivation for the whole event was former President Trump's "Big Lie" about a stolen election. He made the claim of a stolen, fraudulent election in 2016 when he lost the popular vote. With the full resources of the government for four years, he never proved his claim. But when he lost the popular vote in 2020 by 7 million votes, out came the same lie, bigger and louder and again with no proof, as his loyal hand-picked Attorney General Bill Barr has testified.

Trump scheduled his January 6 rally and goaded the riotous mob to come to the Capitol at the precise day and hour that they would interfere with Congress' Constitutional duty to accept the results of the 2020, vote of the people. This deliberate blockage of the function of our established government was not only illegitimate, it plainly met Webster's definition of an act of sedition---a major crime against the democratic government of the people of the United States.

Dudley Wells lives in Twin Valley, Minnesota