The partisan special investigation hearings of the January 6th committee kicked off the hearings comparing the protesters who stormed the Capitol that day to supporters of slavery, the Ku Klux Klan, and the lynching of black people.
“I’m from a part of the country where people justify the actions of slavery, Ku Klux Klan, and lynching,” committee chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said. “I’m reminded of that dark history as I hear voices today trying to justify the actions of the insurrectionists of Jan. 6th, 2021.”
It only took one minute from the time Thompson opened the committee hearing until he compared January 6th to the worst moments of American history.
He reminded everyone in the room to they all swore the same oath to defend the United States from its enemies, describing the Jan 6th protesters as “domestic enemies” of the constitution.
“We swore an oath to defend the constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic,” he said.
Thompson defended the nature of the hearings, arguing they were just as important as the independent commission to investigate the attacks of 9-11.
“In this moment, when the dangers of our Constitution and our democracy loom large, nothing could be more important,” he said.
Thompson insisted that the protesters who stormed Capitol Hill that day did so at “the encouragement of the president of the United States” Donald Trump.
He warned of the ongoing threat that January 6th signified an ongoing threat to the very fabric of the nation.
“The cause of our Democracy remains in danger. The conspiracy to thwart the will of the people is not over,” he said. “There are those in this audience who thirst for power but have no love or respect for what makes America great.”