One of the most distressing things about the Donald Trump movement is seeing putative “conservatives” make excuses for the 2021 Capitol rioters. The same people who usually defend police and castigate rowdy protesters suddenly jettison their law-and-order pretensions and join former President Donald Trump in describing rioters as “hostages” and “patriots.”

Progressive journalist Bill Lueders provided a necessary corrective on Tuesday for such morally indefensible rationalizations.