Former congressional staffer from Idaho recalls visceral reaction to Jan. 6 insurrection

Jan. 6 has been added to America’s days of remembrance and not in a good way. The storming of the U.S. Capitol by hundreds of insurrectionists intent on preventing the certification of a Presidential election brought shock waves to our nation’s democracy. The country continues to reel at the worst attack on the Capitol building since the British burned it in 1814.

Perhaps we should not have been surprised. In a survey of Idaho and four Intermountain West states conducted last fall by Boise State University’s Frank Church Institute, more than 20% of respondents believed violence against the government can be justified, and nearly 60% expect more violence on government officials or buildings will occur in the future.

A more recent poll by the Washington Post-University of Maryland found that about one-third of Americans believe violence against the government is sometimes justified.

Another poll conducted by CBS/YouGov found that some 68 percent of respondents viewed the Jan. 6 attacks as “a harbinger of increasing political violence, not an isolated incident.”

As someone whose congressional staff career spanned some 20 years in all six congressional office buildings on Capitol Hill, the attack on the U.S. Capitol Police was visceral to me. Congressional staff members; Capitol Police; and staff of the Architect of the Capitol — including cafeteria workers, elevator operators, landscapers and cleaners who maintain the buildings and grounds — are all like family to those who work in the Capitol complex.

The mission of the Capitol Police is to “(p)rotect the Congress — its Members, employees, visitors, and facilities — so it can fulfill its constitutional and legislative responsibilities in a safe, secure and open environment.”

As Rep. Bennie Thompson, chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on the January 6th Attack, stated on CNN, “What we have been able to ascertain is that we came perilously close to losing our democracy. …Had those insurrectionists been successful, we are not certain what we would have had, had it not been for the brave men and women who protected the Capitol in spite of being woefully outnumbered.”

Chairman Thompson’s statement underscores the importance of the work of the Select Committee’s investigation to reveal the facts about what happened at the Capitol, to uncover the forces that led to an attack on democracy, and to make recommendations to ensure it never happens again.

Much will be written about the events of Jan. 6, but my thoughts will be with those heroic police officers who stood down the mob violence, thereby preserving our constitutional democracy.