Despite claims to the contrary, the January 6th “Insurrection” was not the worst attack on the Capitol since 1812.
On its one year anniversary, the White House desperately equated the incident in magnitude with September 11 and Pearl Harbor. Columnist Michael Goodwin characterized Biden’s statements as an attempt to weaponize the “insurrection” for political purposes. That may be true, considering that Biden trails the so-called “leader” of the conspiracy, Donald Trump, in the 2024 polls.
Don’t Believe The Hype
Regardless of the motivation behind these statements, the significance of the January 6 “insurrection” is not as advertised Thanks to a list compiled by writer Yossi Gestetner, we can cure their ignorance with actual facts:
- Back in 1915, police responded to an explosion at the Capitol, which was a “call for peace” according to a letter that claimed responsibility.
- In 1954, four Puerto Rican nationalists shot at random from the spectators’ galleries of the House. Five members of Congress were injured, one seriously.
- Later, in 1971, a bomb exploded in the Senate wing of the Capitol, apparently in protest of the Vietnam War.
- Then, in 1983, the “Armed Resistance Unit” bombed the Senate in retaliation for U.S. military involvement in Grenada and Lebanon.
- Also, in 1998, an armed assailant stormed passed U.S. Capitol security. Two Capitol Police officers died in the line of duty.
- Finally, in 2018, hundreds stormed the Senate building to disrupt the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. 302 people were arrested, yet Speaker Pelosi chose not to convene a Congressional Commission to investigate why it happened.
And that’s just the Capitol. If we expanded our focus, we can include the attempted insurrection outside the Supreme Court’s doors after Justice Kavanaugh’s confirmation. We can also include when violent clashes in Lafayette Park resulted in over 60 injured Secret Service officers. Those clashes caused Secret Service to hurry President Trump and his family into the White House bunker.
Hopefully, Gestetner’s history lesson serves as a reminder not to fall for the hyperbole of a buffoon’s agenda gymnastics.