8 February 2022 — 0001 mst
Illegitimate Political Discourse
Guest Essay By James C. Nelson
Montana Supreme Court Justice (Ret.)
In censuring Representatives Liz Chaney and Adam Kinzinger for their audacity in serving on the House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021, insurrection, the Republican National Committee (RNC) declared that the Select Committee was “persecut[ing] ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse.” (Note 1)
Just so we are all on the same page about the event being referred to by the RNC, this would be the one where a mob of some 10,000 people (variously described as domestic terrorists, insurrectionists or tourists — depending who is doing the describing), fired up by Donald Trump and other members of his cult stormed the Nation’s Capitol building in an apparent effort to disrupt the Congresspersons and officials engaged in counting the electoral college votes and confirming that Joe Biden won the 2020 Presidential election. The ultimate goal of this effort was to re-install Mr. Trump as President, notwithstanding that he lost both the electoral college vote and the popular vote.
As a result of this event, 10 people died, over half of those, peace officers, and about 150 peace officers were injured. (Note 2) About 2,000 people forced entry into the Capitol, and the building itself was severely damaged — offices were ransacked, property was destroyed, feces was smeared on the Capitol’s walls, a scaffold was constructed to hang Vice President Mike Pence (because he rebuked Mr. Trump’s effort to overturn the official vote count). (Note 3) Prosecutors contend that about $1.5 million damage was caused (exclusive of substantially more than that to harden the Capitol building against future attacks and pay for National Guard troops called up).
Jaw-dropping as this is, the January 6, 2021, attack on the Nation’s Capitol and those within it, was according to the Republican Party, “legitimate political discourse” by “ordinary citizens.”
Keep in mind that “legitimate political discourse” is protected free speech under the First Amendment. Indeed, Mr. Trump obviously also thinks so because he recently pledged that, if elected in 2024, he would pardon the rioters. (Note 4)
Also keep in mind that if the RNC and Mr. Trump are right and that the described conduct is “legitimate political discourse” — and, thus, protected free speech under the First Amendment — then certain consequences flow from that.
For instance, say “ordinary citizens” get fed up with Montana’s present governor, legislature and attorney general. Apparently, the Republican Party would agree that these ordinary citizens could form a mob, forcibly enter Montana’s Capitol building, ransack offices, break furniture, smear feces on the Capitol’s walls, and, God forbid, kill or injure peace officers trying to defend against the riot.
Say it isn’t so, but if this sort of “legitimate political discourse” is protected free speech under the First Amendment, then, a fortiori, it would be protected free speech under Article II, section 7 of Montana’s Constitution, as well.
That said, and while the RNC, Donald Trump, fascists, Nazis, Bolsheviks and anarchists might believe that riots and insurrections are “legitimate political discourse,” in truth, this belief along with the RNC’s and Mr. Trump’s statements to that effect are of the same quality as the stuff the “ordinary citizens” smeared on the Capitol’s walls — the old “s” word, pure and simple.
Redefining criminal conduct — insurrection and riot — as “legitimate political discourse” doesn’t make it so, the declarations of the RNC and Donald Trump to the contrary, notwithstanding.
More concerning, however, that these official pronouncements have been handed down by a major political party — the Republican one — should be a red-flag warning to all the rest of us “ordinary citizens” that an authoritarian take-over of our government is right around the corner.
Then see how much “legitimate political discourse” you’ll have.
(1) https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/04/us/politics/republicans-jan-6-cheney-censure.html
(2) https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/05/us/politics/jan-6-capitol-deaths.html
(3) See:
https://abc7.com/jan-6-insurrection-us-capitol-riot/11428976/
(4) https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/04/us/politics/republicans-jan-6-cheney-censure.html