Members of the ultranationalist surged Washington, D.C. last Jan. 6 to oppose the certification of the Electoral College vote for President Joe Biden.
The breach on the Capitol building by a mob of pro-Trump supporters shattered windows and vandalized the Capitol building.
Militant group members joined with scores of others who rampaged inside the Capitol as they stalked the halls waving Confederate flags.
Rioters were hostile and venomous even requiring Vice President Mike Pence to be taken to a secure location while forcing hundreds of lawmakers, staff, and reporters to either evacuate or shelter-in-place.
The crowd included members of the Proud Boys and other groups with violent ideologies. Videos reveal the presence of several noted hardcore nativists and white nationalists. Extremists forced their way into the Capitol building disrupting sessions of both houses of Congress and leaving a police officer and four others dead.
Former President Trump while speaking at the rally that preceded the riots encouraged rioters to march to Capitol Hill. Trump’s incendiary rhetoric inspired his followers to engage in more drastic — even lethal — acts of political violence.
Flags, signs and symbols of racist, white supremacist and extremist groups were prominently displayed along with Trump 2020 banners and American flags at the US Capitol.
Rep. Jason Crow, D-CO., called the breach a “massive security failure and I think an awful lot of people should lose their jobs over this.”
After making arrests on lower-level offenses federal law enforcement’s next challenge is building broader conspiracy cases against the extremist who stormed the Capitol building.
Dr. Erroll Southers, former FBI special agent and homeland security expert at the University of Southern California says we have a significant domestic terrorist threat.
Public confidence in the investigation is a concern because law enforcement and government agencies have routinely failed to acknowledge the full scope of white extremists and actually do something about it, especially when it appears in their own ranks.
“We have looked at this for years, says Dr. Southers. “By the way there was an FBI report that was heavily redacted 15 years ago in 2006 that said the infiltration of law enforcement by the right wing was unbelievable and they actually reintroduce this report two months ago in Congress.”
Dr. Southers adds this is a “wake-up call” and it’s unfortunate that two law enforcement colleagues got killed but it is a huge wake-up call to understand how serious this threat is.
