The Fascists Marching on Washington Aren’t Looking For “Calm”.
By: Lauren Elizabeth
Tags: Politics, Election 2020, Donald Trump, Government, Republican Party

The Fascists Marching on Washington Aren’t Looking For “Calm”.

Luis M. Alvarez/AP Photos

Since before he even officially announced his candidacy, many who had long hoped that Joe Biden would run for President have argued that he would be especially equipped to restore a sense of calm, and normalcy to an increasingly divided nation reeling after years of Trump’s presidency. In response, those of us on the left have argued that not only will Trump’s hold on the Republican party long outlast his time in office, but that his base simply is not interested in “calm”, or the return to the normal and civility that liberals long for. Frankly, long before but particularly since Trump lost his bid for re-election, the right has been escalating in ways that have gone above and beyond in validating the concerns of the left. Perhaps one of the most recent examples of their only intensifying anger and violence took place in Washington D.C. on December 12th, when right wing protestors and Proud Boy members once again descended upon the city.

Reporting on the rally, Emily Davis, Rachel Weiner, Clarence Williams, Marissa J. Lang, and Jessica Contrera with The Washington Post wrote:

“…In smaller numbers than their gathering last month, they roamed from the Capitol to the Mall and back again, seeking inspiration from speakers who railed against the Supreme Court, Fox News and President-elect Joe Biden. The crowds cheered for recently pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn, marched with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and stood in awe of a flyover from what appeared to be Marine One. But at night, the scene became violent. At least four people were stabbed near Harry’s Bar at 11th and F streets NW, a gathering point for the Proud Boys, a male-chauvinist organization with ties to white nationalism. The victims were hospitalized and suffered possibly life-threatening injuries, D.C. fire spokesman Doug Buchanan said. It was not immediately clear with which groups the attackers or the injured might have been affiliated.”

How much more of this are we going to witness before liberal voters and politicians alike acknowledge that this is not simply going to disappear on January 20th? The right is not only uninterested in calm, they are seeking war.

Months before the election took place, as it started to become even more likely that he was going to lose, I couldn’t shake the feeling that a Trump loss would not prompt a sentiment of defeat among his base, but rather a sense of vindication. A Trump loss after all would — in their minds — prove that every grievance they’ve held with the Democratic party and the Washington power structure overall was valid. For the most ardent of Donald Trump’s supporters, there was absolutely no way he could lose without what they seem to believe was an orchestrated, corrupt DNC swamp plot for antifa “radicals” and communists from Venezuela to somehow cheat him out of victory. With an intensity that only continues to increase, many of them seem to be viewing the results of the election not only as a confirmation of everything they felt about Trump’s opponents, but a call to arms.

It isn’t just proud boys, or other groups that Democrats continue to insist are “fringe” either. Sydney Powell, who was representing Trump just days ago and still argues in court on his behalf, apparently retweeted a message that Biden must not only concede the election, but should confess his crimes to avoid capital punishment. The majority of Republicans in the House expressed their approval of Texas’ bid to overturn the election through the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, Democrats continue to insist on unity while #BidenCalm trends on Twitter, with liberals sharing images of Biden with Sesame Street characters and expressing their glee that there’s only a little over a month to go until the “chaos” is over with.

With the right wing, they never just disappear. As material conditions around the country continue to deteriorate and liberals pretend that voting Trump out of office is the end of an era that we can now simply move on from as though it didn’t happen, the right only continues to fester, grow, and get angrier. I do not pretend that the solutions to the problem the right poses are easy, but the fact that a far from minuscule percentage of the Republican base seems to be ready for war is not going to go away if we pretend they’re no longer a factor. Whether it be with seemingly inevitable attempts for them to take over the party in the halls of power, or their equally inevitable efforts to inflict violence against those they view as their opposition, all signs point to them only getting more and more dangerous.