[direwolf]

Originally Posted by activeStick

Reports that around 20 people were arrested today in DC during clashes between pro-Trump, "Stop the Steal" supporters on one side and people against them on the other. The level of hate these groups have for each other is off the charts. Spoiler for violence.

Spoiler!

https://twitter.com/user/status/1327762320068493312

This kind of crap is a direct result of Trump's childish refusal to concede and his ridiculous fraud claims. The longer the White House and the GOP continue down this dangerous path, the worse it's gonna get.


https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...fraud-n1247849

While aides say that Trump is coming around to the reality that he lost to Joe Biden, the president’s public attacks on the validity of the election results and his unwillingness to concede has allowed for conspiracy theories and misinformation to fester, particularly among his most devoted fans.

Members of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group that Trump declined to denounce during the first presidential debate, endorsed the events. Neo-Nazi Andrew Anglin, one of the organizers of the deadly Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally in 2017, also promoted the march, among other far-right figures.


The Proud Boys clashed at times with small groups of counterprotesters throughout the day and into the evening.

Michelle, a retiree from Maryland who declined to give her last name, said she had also heard of the event from Fox News coverage as well as the Newsmax website.


"This election was completely fraudulent," she said, listing off a number of debunked claims of voter fraud, including Dominion Voting Systems, a company that makes voting machines, "deleted" millions of Trump votes. The baseless theory has been pushed by Trump and the discredited QAnon conspiracy movement.


Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, Congresswoman-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene, who supports QAnon, as well as Alex Jones, a discredited conspiracy theorist, spoke at the event.

The demonstrations also raised serious health concerns as coronavirus cases climbed to record-high numbers this week.


Hundreds of people flew into Washington from around the country (only 5 percent of Washingtonians voted for Trump, compared to 92 percent for Biden) at a time when health experts are urging Americans to stay at home and cancel holiday plans. Many flooded into local hotels, restaurants and public transportation, often ignoring mask guidelines.