The idea of a 9/11-style commission to focus on the Jan. 6 riot serves no real utility now, except to allow Democrats to dredge up the GOP’s lowest point in recent history going into an election cycle.
This is not an excuse of former President Donald Trump, who certainly bears some moral responsibility for the riot. There wouldn’t have been a riot without his incessant lies and conspiracy theories, along with his unfounded attacks on then-Vice President Mike Pence. He’s failed to condemn the riot and failed to accept his election defeat. His legacy is permanently stained.
But all of the bases there have already been covered. Trump was impeached and left office in disgrace, even without being convicted by the Senate. Over 400 people have been charged for participating in the riots, and federal prosecutors expect to add at least 100 more to that total.
The question of Capitol security has also been covered. A task force led by retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who was selected by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, came back with a 13-page report in March on the issue, complete with recommendations for improvement. And the House Oversight Committee held a hearing on the riot last week, after which even CNN concluded that “both sides used cherry-picked facts to push incomplete and inaccurate narratives.”
So what exactly is left? We know Trump bears moral (not legal) responsibility for what happened. The actual participants have been legally charged and await trial. There has already been a review of Capitol security. Is there anything that a commission could uncover that would truly change those previous outcomes? It’s not likely, especially when Republicans would have to sign off on any subpoenas.
These discussions have ramped up around the same time that a poll from Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg indicates that Democratic enthusiasm for the 2022 midterm elections has dropped off dramatically, likely because Trump is no longer in the national picture.
Democrats are playing defense with a thin House majority. Relitigating Jan. 6 would allow them to rev up the base once again, as well as attempt to drag down support for House Republicans in swing districts. It will also help President Joe Biden bury the disasters he’s dealing with, from inflation and the border crisis to Hamas terrorists and, most recently, his gift to Russian President Vladimir Putin with the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
A commission will do little of consequence outside of providing content for political attack ads and establishment media outlets that have seen their audiences decline since Trump left the stage. It will be one big game of political football, and it’s one we could really do without.
