With Joe Biden’s inauguration as the 46th President of the United States mere days away, the fallout from Donald Trump’s desperate attempts to cling to his ill gotten power continues to rain down on the news cycle like little radioactive snowflakes.
To the surprise of no one but the perpetrators, law enforcement has opened hundreds of investigations and there have already been several notable arrests. Expect that number to rise significantly as many of the suspects committed their crimes live on video, like Northern Kentucky resident Chad Barrett Jones, 42, of Cox Creek…
Video footage from inside the U.S. Capitol showed Jones in a red hooded jacket and gray skullcap among an aggressive crowd trying to break into a barricaded door to the Speaker’s Lobby. Seconds after officers began moving forward, Jones then forcefully struck the door’s glass panels at least 10 times with a long, wood flagpole, an affidavit alleges.
Jones is due in federal court on Tuesday.
WLKY, Louisville, KY
Many who attended the Stop the Steal rally have been identified by their own friends and family, including this “MAGA Mom” put on blast by her own daughter after she was seen on the TV “defending democracy.”
Helena says seeing her mother in the video was “surreal,” but not necessarily surprising. Therese, Helena says, had a history of expressing pro-Trump views, and Helena claims she had kicked her out of the house months ago for having participated in the Black Lives Matter protests, referring to it as a “violent” movement. “I knew her beliefs and the way she acts,” Helena says. “But I didn’t think she’d stoop this low. It definitely was a realization to me that she’s come to that point in her life.”
EJ Dickson, Rolling Stone
Meanwhile the FBI is closing in on alleged members of extremist groups like The Oathkeepers, Three Percenters, and the metal band Iced Earth?
Jon Schaffer, an Indiana musician, turned himself in to the FBI on Sunday afternoon, officials said. On Jan. 6, Schaffer was photographed inside the Capitol, wearing a hat that said “Oath Keepers Lifetime Member.” Schaffer founded Iced Earth, a heavy-metal band, and music fans quickly recognized him as the FBI circulated wanted posters with his face on them.
Schaffer was charged with six counts, including engaging in an act of physical violence. Authorities said Schaffer was among the rioters who targeted U.S. Capitol Police with bear spray.
By Devlin Barrett and Spencer S. Hsu
In news closer to home, and closer to the Grounded Parents beat, it should come as no surprise that the anti-choice/pro-forced birth movement had a heavy presence at the Judas Jamboree…
One of the people there was John Brockhoeft, who posted online about his presence at the Capitol. Brockhoeft isn’t just any Trump supporter. He’s also a convicted anti-abortion terrorist.
His presence wasn’t a coincidence, but an example of the long-standing crossover between anti-abortion and white supremacist terrorist movements, and how America’s complacency around both has helped pave the way for this moment of terrifying insurrection.
There were other anti-abortion activists who were involved in the attack, according to a NARAL report. One of them was Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood clinic director turned anti-choice extremist, who was present during Trump’s speech inciting the riot. Another was Taylor Hansen, an anti-choice activist connected to a group called Baby Lives Matter, who posted violent videos to Twitter during the riots.
Lauren Rankin, Refinery 29
John Brockhoeft rang a bell to this Cincinnati boy, because dude has already done time for burning down our Planned Parenthood clinic in 1985…
“For me personally, was it worth it? Incredibly so,” Brockhoeft said in a 2013 interview with Cincinnati news outlet WCPO. “I lost seven years of my life, but I gained a beautiful young wife who loves me and six more children, beside the three I already had, and I couldn’t imagine life without any one of those children.”
In that interview, Brockhoeft rejected the idea that attacking abortion clinics qualified as “violence”—and said his views on using what he called “force” against clinics hadn’t changed. Asked if he’s still involved with the Army of God, an infamous group that encourages people to fight legalized abortion with violence, Brockhoeft replied, “The Army of God organization? What Army of God organization?”
He then smiled.
Carter Sherman, Vice News
A couple of good old fashioned regular GP reads to finish us up.
Please Spare Me Male Politicians Complaining About Parenting. Jessica Valenti takes New York Mayoral hopeful, former contender for the Democratic Presidential nomination, and all around awkward finance nerd Andrew Yang to task for his backwards attitudes towards women and the workplace.
I’m So Sick of Correcting All of My Husband’s Parenting Mistakes. Doyin Richards takes a Care and Feeding questioner to task for HER backwards attitudes towards her husbands parenting skills.
I allowed my kid to switch from an NFL PLAYOFF GAME so that they could watch Unpregnant on HBO Max while their Aunt Katy died their hair hot pink. It was a good decision in the end.
Featured Image: Flowers for the Victims of the Capitol Riot, Joe Flood on Flickr.
