Assault on the Capitol: The US Republicans and their increasingly unique view of the world

Assault on the Capitol: The US Republicans and their increasingly unique view of the world

The split in the US can also be seen in surveys. For most Americans, Capitol Tower participants are rioters; Republicans prefer to call them protesters. It’s not the only way to look at the world differently.

Just two Republicans had come to the January 6th memorial ceremony of the US Congress, and that was the daughter and father. Reps Liz Cheney and Dick Cheney, US Vice-President under George W. Bush. Otherwise none of the Conservatives showed up on the anniversary of the storming of parliament. That black day for American democracy. The demonstrative lack of interest may have disappointed many, but it does not come as a surprise. At least not when looking at the state of mind of the Republicans.

In its weekly round-the-clock survey, it has compiled a whole bundle of how Americans view their country. Or rather looks, plural. Even well-documented events like the capture of the Capitol a year ago are not the same for everyone. After all, the majority agree that the date is a tragic event for the country:. But that was it with the agreement, even with the rule of law taken for granted, such as the investigation of the events by a committee, opinions differ: 59 percent of the conservatives simply reject it.

Protesters or insurgents?

Also noticeable are the differences in the description of the participants in the Capitol Tower. Almost two thirds would use the term “protesters”, just under third would use the term “rioters” and ten percent would use the term “insurgents” – but that is how the majority of Americans see them. For 26 percent of the Conservatives, the intruders are even “patriots” and more than half (56 percent) call their actions in Washington “Defense of Freedom”.

There is also disagreement over the assessment of the outbreaks of violence. In December, 64 percent of all respondents said that the storming of parliament was “extreme” or at least “very” violent, while this view was shared by just under 40 percent of Republicans. Half were or are still convinced that the demonstrators would have been “peaceful” and / or behaved “in accordance with the law”. This view is also in contrast to that of the security authorities. More than 700 participants in the Capitol Tower have now been arrested and more than 70 convicted. Including Jake Angeli, the famous “QANon” shaman, he regrets what he did back then.

In general, political violence seems to be becoming more and more conservative. Although government officials such as US President Joe Biden assure that something like the attack on the Capitol will never repeat itself, 60 percent of Americans fear exactly that Means of violence should be used to save the country “. The question of the “Public Religion Research Institute” is posed suggestively because it begins in the original with the claim that “things are getting out of hand in the USA”.

Enough violent “to be concerned”

The political scientist Torben Lütjen said in the stern on the US Republicans: “In a way, the party itself has become a victim of its own populism. You couldn’t be far enough from conventional politics; the crazier the better. But this populism only works if you still add a briquette. “

The authors of “FiveThirtyEight” therefore point out that more cautiously formulated surveys on the subject would also come to different results. According to this, only around four percent of those questioned would support violence as a political means. However, it concluded, “four percent of the US population is still ten million people. Enough to be concerned.”

Sources: “FiveThirtyEight”, “”, “Washington Post”, , YouGov/UMassAmherst

Source From: Stern

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