Blue Lives Matter Although Not At The United States Capitol Building on January Sixth

 July 31st, 2021

My Dear America

They were lined up seemingly from shortest to tallest.  The Boys in Blue.  The  Police Officers who bravely defended the Nations Capitol Building on January Sixth, that terrible day that we all wish didn't happen.  That is all of us Except Donald Trump and apparently those Republican Allies who are foolishly sticking by him in his efforts to Eradicate Democracy and install a Hitlerian Form of Dictatorship in The United States Of America.  

The Police Officers testifying before the January Sixth Commission were Daniel Hodges and Michael Fanone of the D.C Metropolitan Police Force and Sergeant Aquillo Gonell and Officer Harry Dunn of The United States Capitol Police Force.

The Police Officers were testifying at the First Public Session of the House of Representatives Select Committee appointed To Investigate the Invasion of the Capitol Building on January Sixth, Twenty Twenty One.  This Investigative body has been charged by the House of Representatives to investigate Who Invaded The Capitol, Why They Invaded the Capitol,  What damage the Invaders did while in the Capitol and Who Planned and Encouraged the Capitol Invasion.

There had been considerable arguing between Democrats and Republicans regarding whether or not there should have been an investigation by the Congress to begin with.  Democrats said Yes, there  should be.  Republicans (With The Exception of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger) said No, There should not be an investigation by the House

On the Morning of Tuesday, July 27th, however the matter was moot.  The January Sixth Commission was fully in operation with Several Democratic Members of the House, including Commission Chairman, Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, Zoe Loghgren, Adam Schiff and Pete Aguilar, from California, Jamie Raskin from Maryland, Stephanie Murphy from Florida and Elaine Luria from Virginia and the Two Republicans, Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, who were now being called "Pelosi Republicans" by House Minority Leader, Kevin McCarthy.

I guess being called "Pelosi Republicans" must mean that they are Republicans who believe in telling the Truth rather than parroting and promoting Donald Trump's Bullshit Lies.

The Police Officers Testimony was riveting and certainly made it clear that Donald Trump and his Republican Allies had good reason not to see this investigation take place.  

Republicans had downplayed the necessity of an investigation of the January Sixth Insurrection. 

One Republican House member characterized the Capitol Incursion as being like a bunch of 'Tourists' walking calmly through the Capitol Building, apparently not taking into consideration that the mob smashed windows to get in for their "Tour" of the Capitol shouting "Where's Nancy" and "Hang Mike Pence." They even crapped on the floor.  

Metropolitan Police Officer, Daniel Hodges had a different term for these "Tourists" which was certainly more appropriate.  He called the members of the mob "Terrorists" every time he spoke of them during his testimony to the Committee.  They certainly were that to him during his encounter with the Trump Goon Squad.  He and all four of the Officers testifying spoke of the horribly violent treatment they had all received at the hands of the Trump inspired mob.  

They were beaten with pipes, flag poles carrying Trump Flags and American Flags kicked and spat on and subjected to all manner of degradation by the "Terrorists."

Officer Harry Dunn was bombarded with epithets including countless cries of "Nigger" when he bravely acknowledged that he had voted for Joe Biden after he was told by a Crowd member that "Nobody voted for Joe Biden."

Sergeant Gonell stated that he was called a "Traitor" and a "Disgrace' by the rioters despite the fact that he was an Iraq Army Veteran, as well as a Police Officer.  He was also told that he should be executed and, in fact, thought he was going to be.  He was beaten badly by the rioters, as were the other testifying officers, and has numerous continuing Physical as well as Emotional wounds, as do the other officers on the panel.  Gonell mocked the Trump claim of "Hugs and kisses" given by the rioters to the officers. Gonell likened the violence of January Sixth to the violence of a medieval battlefield.  He stated that January Sixth was worse than anything he ever experienced during the Iraq War.

Officer Daniel Hodges said he was told by one of the "Terrorists" that "You will die on your knees.

Officer Michael Fanone testified that he was pulled into the crowd beaten, shocked repeatedly with a taser, robbed of his badge and knocked unconscious, suffering a heart attack.  Fanone also said he heard a rioter say "Kill him with his own gun."

Although one woman was shot inside the Capitol the officers testified that they did not use their guns in their attacks because they realized that shooting rioters would only make a very bad situation worse. I think we should applaud them for their obvious restraint when it came to shooting.

Although Republicans found it appropriate to fund countless investigations of Benghazi, Mitch McConnell had the nerve to state that he couldn't find the time to tune into the January Sixth Hearing which was Televised.  

Everything revealed in the testimony of the Police Officers about January Sixth is Deeply Disturbing.   That testimony  combined with the nationwide efforts of Republicans to rip away voting rights from Democrats makes it time to recognize that we are knee deep in a political quicksand that is about to kill Democracy in the United States Of America.

Yes, Democrats right now control the White House, The House and Senate but if Republicans nationwide get their way Democrats will not be in the driver's seat for long.  Efforts are continuing in nearly every state in the union to restrict voting for many Democratic constituencies.

It is time for Democrats to get active in every way possible in every state, County and municipality in the country  

It is time for Real Patriots to step up and do what we can to save the benefits of Democracy that we have taken for granted for so long.  

It is time to put Donald Trump and his White Nationalist-Ku Klux Klan and Nazi Patriots out to pasture and regain sanity again in both the Republican and Democratic parties.  We owe it to our Founding Fathers and we owe it to Ourselves to rid this nation of this Anti Democratic Cancer on our Democracy before it is too late to save what Democracy we have left.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher