“We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be”
- Amanda Gorman, Youth Poet Laureate speaking at President Biden’s Inauguration
A pop historian compiling a montage of US history would surely include pictures of the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers, the Revolutionary War of 1776, the Civil War of the 1860s, FDR’s record-setting four terms as President, Kennedy’s assassination, 9/11 etc. On 6th January 2021, new images would have joined the montage as a rioting mob broke into the Capitol building to try and disrupt the largely ceremonial event of counting each State’s votes to decide who would be the next President.
The events leading up to the break-in have been well documented and reported. Trump’s involvement is now the subject of Impeachment proceedings. Likewise, we are now familiar with the behaviour of the mob. Many have now been arrested, several have been charged and investigations continue. This all begs the question as to who were these people and what motivated them?
To give events a UK perspective, what happened on the 6th was akin to an Oswald Mosley-type character whipping up a crowd in Trafalgar Square to march down Whitehall and break into the Palace of Westminster.
Either out of a sense of brazen indifference or plain stupidity, many of the rioters filmed their attempted insurrection. It is clear from viewing the footage they were overwhelmingly white. This begs the question, from which strata of white American society they had been drawn.
Clearly, they were not from the poorest groups who inhabit the inner suburbs of many large US cities whose work, if any, is usually low paid. The rioters looked to be comfortably well off. They were well decorated in Trump insignia clothing with plenty of bobble hats, t-shirts, scarfs etc in view. Now I cannot believe clothing oneself as a Trump loyalist comes cheap and it is very likely for every item sold Trump gets a handy percentage. They were also well wrapped against the Washington January chill. Most appeared armed with cell phones determined to record and share on social media the insurrection inspired by their leader.
Some were not only dressed in Trump loyalty gear and against the cold, but also came well prepared for combat. Hard hats, flak jackets, military gear etc were also well in evidence.
The media were inserted into the mob. Those agencies most frequently the ire of Trump were themselves attacked – CNN, AP News etc. Some media outlets did manage to get interviews with the insurgents. They came over as well-spoken, educated, angry, determined and completely convinced the election had been stolen from Trump. They were asked where they had travelled from. Most were from southern States, a few from the north but none were local. They must have taken time off work, driven or flown to Washington and for some a hotel stay would have been necessary.
The “star” interviewee became known on social media as #OnionLizzie – Elizabeth announced herself as being from Knoxville, Tennessee as she dabbed her eyes after being maced by the Capitol police (an event she appeared to be surprised at) and that she was present for the” revolution”. Others interviewed were convinced beyond doubt the election had been stolen from their man, that Mike Pence was the devil personified and that the time had come for another Civil War.
This was clearly no cheap mission for the participants. The events of the day do beg the question “why bother?” given the mob mostly had decently paid jobs and could afford to live comfortably and travel.
The indicators were that this was angry white America on the march. A part of America that feels threatened by the changing composition of the country and the way the economy is also changing. The recent election was the first-time voters of colour outnumbered white folks. The Democrats knew this and were able to embrace its opportunities. Biden’s Cabinet looks like the America of the 21st Century. Increasingly non-white people now hold the sway in State after State. For some this is a bitter pill to swallow, particularly in the South. It is not by accident part of the mob storming around the Capitol building were calling for the deaths of people of colour (the mob used more Anglo-Saxon language). It is southern States who have perfected the tactics of voter suppression. Not white voter suppression, of course, but voters from non-white communities. Even this tactic was soundly defeated twice in Georgia within two months.
The changing composition of voters was evident from the Democrats’ victories in Arizona and Georgia. The Democrats are slowly but surely taking control in States down the eastern seaboard – will North Carolina fall next? They are also moving east along the sunbelt States. After Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico, will Texas be next?
The US economy is also changing. Atlanta is now the base for CNN and employment giants like Coca Cola. There are more high-tech jobs which appeal to a broad ethnic base of job hunters. The same process is underway in Arizona.
A section of white America feels threatened by this process. Trump has seized on it and developed a cult-like following. It is not by accident that areas in States where he lost, and where he subsequently focused his unfounded allegations of voter fraud, were counties where people of colour predominantly lived.
The US is a bitterly divided society. Many white people feel threatened and believe the zero-sum gambit that others can only gain at their expense. White supremacy has a voice, an opportunity given it by Trump. This all begs the question as to whether, as proposed by newly sworn in President Biden, the country can unify and end its “uncivil” war.
One of the challenges Biden faces is how to find a way forward when both sides cannot even agree what the truth is. The lie about the Presidential election being stolen will long outlive the lie’s author. Even in defeat, as Trump retreated to Florida, he could not find it in himself to concede to Biden and give him the traditional phone call. This can only nurture a sense of festering resentment in the most enthusiastic quarters of the Trump voter base.
The media, as the BBC regularly reports, are obsessed with finding some way to placate Trump’s 74 million voters. Although, in UK terms this sounds like a lot of votes, it represents about one-third of the US electorate. Biden won the election with an overwhelming, record-setting 81 million voters. While he would not want to further antagonise the Trump base, bending over too far to placate them could serve to put him the wrong side of his own voters. Biden might be better served by focusing on implementing the manifesto upon which he was elected. If Biden is seduced into feeding the Trump beast, Republicans on Capitol Hill will lap it up and give him no thanks.
Perhaps events over the coming months and years will play out in two ways. It is just not possible to compromise with white supremacy and all the baggage that goes with it. While Biden should not take steps to unnecessarily upset Trumpers, the reality is that he automatically will as all his actions will be described as anti-unity and socialist. Cable news networks and House and Senate Republicans are already doing this. Biden should avoid losing voter capital by reaching out to Trump voters at the expense of his own. If he does his best to manage the pandemic in the interests of all Americans, and directs the subsequent economic recovery so that it works to the benefit of citizens most badly hit by the recession, that is possibly the best he can and should do. The process of equalising out job opportunities, being driven by the corporate sector, will continue and there will be little the white supremacy movement can do about it.
Biden’s multi-million-dollar economic recovery plan is a kind of post-pandemic Marshall Plan which should help those Americans most in need of assistance. It needs to be accompanied with justice being served out to the instigators of, and participants in, the riot. Trump’s Republican allies in the Senate may well let him off the impeachment hook but at least he would have been subject to the process and the outcome will be in full view of the American public. Cases continue apace against the rioters and again the public will be able to see justice administered in the Court system. It is vital voters witness that attacking the Constitution and the halls of democracy has consequences. Many of the rioters were spotted on television by their employers and subsequently dismissed. Many were also spotted and reported to the authorities by friends and family. The military and police are taking a special interest in their present and former members who participated.
Biden also needs to oversee a transformation of cultural and social norms. Racism, bigotry and hatred must not be normalised. The Government needs to use all its hard and soft power to eliminate these behaviours wherever they occur, be it the workplace, the restaurant or Congress.
The second relates to the Republican party itself. It is badly split. So called traditional Republicans point out Trump lost the party the Presidency, the Senate and the Congress in two years. Arizona and Georgia, once staunch Republican states, now have two Democrat Senators each and voted for Biden. Trump’s anger over losing Georgia could be put down to him simply not being able to come to terms with the once-cradle of southern state racism and segregation going Democrat. There could hardly have been a better example of the failure of the Trump project. Traditional Republicans will argue for the party to reach out to new sections of voters and to be less bellicose on issues of race. At present a Republican party that seems open, tolerant and inclusive looks to be a distant prospect.
The problem they face is that Trump still appears to be dominating the party. Election defeat might serve to strengthen the cult, not weaken it. Over the last few days, the Republicans in Arizona could have unwittingly mapped out the future of their party. They held their first convention since the election. Hundreds of rabid Trump supporters turned up and reaffirmed the faith. The “Big Lie” was confirmed, Trump spoke to them remotely and a loyal servant was re-elected party leader for the State. Censures were issued to three senior local party members for not being loyal enough to Trump. One being the Governor for daring to issue a state-wide mask mandate, another the widow of former State Senator John McCain. Trump fans cheered this to the echo. Once news of these events began to spread, 10,000 party members across the State resigned their membership.
Just a few days ago the party in Oregon passed a resolution saying the riot was a false flag – in reality it did not happen!
The problem with cults is that as they become more intense, they shed members at the boundaries and those remaining begin to look more and more out of touch and isolated.
Perhaps the next two years will see the Democrats toughening up in Congress and pushing through the Biden agenda of pandemic management, economic recovery and racial harmonisation while the Republicans tear themselves apart in full public view.
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