1/22/21
The storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6 by a rabid mob of Donald Trump supporters resulted in a failed insurrection. But for far-right extremists, including anti-government militias, white supremacists and violent conspiracy theorists, nothing about the insurrection was a failure. The siege of the Capitol will be framed as a successful demonstration — proof of concept. Almost immediately, images from that day proliferated across social media platforms. On Telegram, white supremacists brazenly trade tips about how to recruit MAGA adherents who abandoned mainstream sites like Twitter in search of more extreme content. Large segments of the mob that stormed the Capitol were unaffiliated — individuals and small groups, family members, neighbors. These could well be the new foot soldiers of the far right. Some, and perhaps many, of these new recruits will have military experience or law enforcement training. What’s more, the infusion of younger members into the ranks of the far right is likely to breathe new life into the movement, ensuring its longevity. Online, recruitment efforts have white supremacists speaking openly of co-opting “Parler refugees,” referencing the conservative social media platform that many Trump supporters flocked to after Mr. Trump was banned from Twitter for inciting violence. Bolstered by conservative radio as well as social media, Mr. Trump had been laying the groundwork for political violence for years.
In a PBS NewsHour Marist poll, 8 percent of Americans surveyed said they supported the insurrection. For a movement obsessed with the concept of government tyranny, the imagery of the Capitol siege — the most powerful symbol of U.S. government — will have enduring resonance. The extreme far right is often more in agreement about what it stands against than what it stands for. Domestic far-right extremism is poised to become a more diverse phenomenon in 2021, bringing together white supremacists marching in crowds alongside conspiracy theorists, militias and other extremists motivated by gun culture and a deep hatred of government. Designating domestic terrorism as a federal crime would provide federal departments and agencies with more tools and resources to combat the threat. The Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va., in August 2017 should have been the alarm for this country to understand the sense of urgency needed to address the threat from an emboldened far right. It wasn’t. Attacks in Pittsburgh in 2018 and El Paso in 2019, and the plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan last year were all missed opportunities to take the threat seriously. The failure to do so were signposts leading to the siege of the Capitol, an event that could catalyze an age of domestic far-right extremism.
