Tying 9/11 to the January 6 Attack on the Capitol

I am no fan of George W. Bush who while in the White House set the stafe for the disasters in Afghanistan and Iraq which squandered American lives and over $8 trillion in taxpayer money.  Yet, even someone who has been wrong on so many issues can be right on occasion as Bush was while speaking in Shanksville, Pennsylvania at the Flight 93 Memorial (which is literally just over a hill from a late relative's home).  There Bush linked the mindset of the 9/11 terrorists and the domestic terrorists who now pose the greatest threat to American security: both were/are motivated by a contempt for democratic majority rule and the Islamic terrorists like many of the white Christian nationalists who participated in the sacking of the U.S. Capitol hold extreme religious views they seek to impose on all of society.  The 9/11 terrorists were lead by Osama bin Laden while the domestic terrorist who attacked the Capiyol and many other domestic terrorist are lead or emboldened by Donald Trump.  Bush did not specifically name Trump or thos who attacked the Capitol, but the connection was clear.  A piece in CNN looks at Bush's remarks and where America now finds itself.  Here are highlights:

Former President George W. Bush was entirely correct in his comments marking the 20th anniversary of 9/11 Saturday when he drew a comparison between the 9/11 attackers and those who waged the January 6 act of "domestic terrorism." While Bush didn't mention the attack by name, it was clear he was invoking it when he said that our nation has seen "growing evidence that the dangers to our country can come not only across borders, but from violence that gathers within."

I vocally disagreed with Bush on policy issues when he served in the White House. But the former President struck the right tone when he noted that, while there "is little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home," they share the same "disdain for pluralism" and "disregard for human life," as evidenced "in their determination to defile national symbols." 

When Bush stated that both the 9/11 and domestic violent extremists wanted to "defile national symbols," I instantly thought of how the January 6 attackers laid siege to our Capitol and how the 9/11 terrorists had also plotted to strike the Capitol (or the White House) with the fourth plane, United 93. It was hard not to notice, given that Bush was speaking in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the very place that plane crashed when heroic passengers rushed the terrorists in control of the cockpit. 

Bush then added point-blank that both foreign and domestic terrorists "are children of the same foul spirit." He concluded with a call to action, "It is our continuing duty to confront them."

The 9/11 terrorists and the January 6 attackers do share the same "foul spirit." One glaring difference is that the al Qaeda attackers were incited and directed by Osama bin Laden, while the January 6 attackers were incited by an American President, Donald Trump. 

It was Trump who for the two months after the election radicalized people with a tsunami of lies, claiming that the election was "stolen." Trump then specifically called his supporters to come to Washington, DC, on January 6 to assist in his efforts to "Stop the steal." And during the rally on that tragic day, Trump implored the crowd to act with lines like, "We're stuck with a President who lost the election by a lot and we have to live with that for four more years," adding, "We're just not going to let that happen." 

We all saw what followed as MAGA supporters tried to "stop the steal" by attacking the Capitol . . . . the greatest threat posed to our nation is not from foreign terrorists but from domestic extremists -- as the FBI has noted -- including those who subscribe to Trump's election lies. 

As the DHS bulletin stated, "Some conspiracy theories associated with reinstating former President Trump have included calls for violence if desired outcomes are not realized."

This should not come as a surprise. For several months now, Trump has been using campaign rallies to repeat the very election lies that incited the January 6 act of domestic terrorism. 

Trump has even publicly defended the January 6 attackers as "peaceful people" and "great people," while calling the police officer who killed an attacker attempting to breach a secured area in the Capitol a "murderer."

Here's Trump on the anniversary of 9/11, spewing the exact type of lie that incited the January 6 attack which resulted in Trump supporters brutally beating and injuring over 140 police officers -- and he's doing this to a room full of police officers. That level of arrogance and detachment from reality is dangerous. 

The 9/11 terrorists, the January 6 attackers and Donald Trump do indeed share the "same foul spirit." If we want to keep America truly safe from domestic terrorists, that means that all involved in the January 6 attack must be brought to justice. And that includes the man who incited that act of domestic terrorism: Donald J. Trump.