Leftist Riots Vs. Capitol ‘Insurrections’ And The Clueless Media That Conflates Them

The January 6 assault on the Capitol, singular and unique as it was, has apparently provided left-leaning mouthpieces in the increasingly laughable mainstream press endless — and I mean endless — excuses to lament potential future violence by Trump supporters.

Both CNN’s Jake Tapper and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes were apoplectic about MAGA violence to come on Sunday morning if “shameless” GOP members didn’t accept “accountability” for what happened the day some Congressmen decided to exercise a Constitutional provision allowing for debate on potential election irregularities in both chambers of Congress.

CNN’s @jaketapper: “If there is no accountability and no attempt by the Republican Party to stop these insane lies that have taken root in their party… This is not going to be the end of MAGA terrorism, this will only be the beginning.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/pL36IKiEZL

— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) February 7, 2021

The shamelessness of Republicans on the Sunday shows is a sight to behold. You got hundreds of thousands of Americans killed and then helped a deadly attack on the Capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power! And it’s all “well, shucks why are Democrats so divisive?”

— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) February 7, 2021

It’s a strange passion given there’s no evidence any other protest involving violence and Trump supporters has happened since. Although there’s plenty of evidence, such as antifa’s latest tantrum in DC Saturday night, that left-wing protests involving necessary police presence have happened elsewhere since January 6. It’s of course not surprising there continues to be left-wing tension in the street. Those demonstrations, often involving destruction of property and violence, have gone on nearly uninterrupted for almost a year.

Here are a couple documented on twitter since January 6:

Washington, DC: Police push #antifa back as they gather around diners during their street march. pic.twitter.com/ATw1PTOGbB

— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) February 7, 2021

BLM STORM ROCHESTER POLICE STATION.. RIPPING DOWN BARRIERS. BLM / Antifa still rioting over JOE BIDEN’s presidency. pic.twitter.com/iWd93tlgbW

— Paul Scott (@Paulscott001) February 7, 2021

The narrative-building by the Tappers and Hayes of the news world is a fairly gross display of partisan spin, especially in light of the fact that, as The Heritage Foundation’s Mike Gonzales reported back in November, the number of violent left-wing events and protests over the 5 summer months of 2020 numbered in the triple digits.

While it may be true, as the authors announce prominently on the second page of their report, that “over 10,100 of the [10,600-plus demonstration events]—or nearly 95 percent—involve[d] peaceful protesters,” that leaves more than 500 events that involved violence. Buried inside the ACLED report, as enterprising journalist Joy Pullmann of the Federalist discovered, are numbers indicating that “of the 633 incidents coded [by the ACLED authors] as riots, 88 percent are recorded as involving Black Lives Matter activists. Data for 51 incidents lack information about the perpetrators’ identities. BLM activists were involved in 95 percent of the riots for which there is information about the perpetrators’ affiliation.”

This confirmed what an informed American could already have inferred—that the demonstrations and subsequent violence were less spontaneous than the media let on, and were connected to the explicitly radical political beliefs embraced by the most prominent groups. Even the New York Times conceded in July that “one of the reasons there have been protests in so many places in the United States is the backing of organizations like Black Lives Matter,” and “while the group isn’t necessarily directing each protest, it provides materials, guidance and a framework for new activists.”

Intrepid on-the-ground reporter Andy Ngo’s new book, “Unmasked: Inside Antifa’s Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy,” puts a bulk of the blame squarely on the same press that is now throwing around words like “shameless” and “accountability.”

As useful idiots for Antifa, the press predictably published reports that helped provoke more hatred for law enforcement, contributing to more people showing up to the protests-turned-riots.

“Trump sent cops to Portland and they’re ‘kidnapping people off the streets,’” read a Vice News headline. “‘It was like being preyed upon’: Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them,” read another from The Washington Post.

All these stories based on Antifa talking points were meant to create an impression that Trump had literally sent secret police to disappear left‐wing opposition. It was false. Using unmarked vehicles to make targeted arrests is neither illegal nor unusual. Every law enforcement agency around the world uses unmarked vehicles. When officers had attempted the usual route of moving in to physically arrest someone at the riots, they were mobbed by rioters who “de‐arrested” their comrades by surrounding police and pulling them away. Antifa claimed victory online each time this happened.

And when members of the press start trying to right the ship, they’re met with condescending snark like that exhibited by Vox‘s resident unbiased scribe, Aaron Rupar.

WhY wOn’T JoE bIdEn CaLl AnTiFa “tErRoRiSts” pic.twitter.com/QXht2jCRZo

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 5, 2021

It’s hard to blame the American people for being uninformed when the press that professes to be informers behaves the way Hayes, Tapper, and Rupar do. Despite the current troubles with social media, the medium does still provide a place for other viewpoints, if they can make it past the censors. Which is still a good thing for Democracy. Hopefully it will remain so.

During the impeachment trial, President Trumps attorneys may want to remind the Senate what went on not at the Capitol, but actually at the White House back in June 2020. pic.twitter.com/XFbnBj0Xdv

— Bernard B. Kerik (@BernardKerik) February 7, 2021