By JAMES E. SCHRADER

Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, is a date that will be seared in our minds for the rest of our lives. It is the day that violent, armed insurgents tried to overthrow our government and subvert their will on our duly elected government officials and overturn a valid and legal election of our next president and vice – president.

The more information that comes out on this incident, the worse it gets. Or should I say, it was planned to be a lot worse. This was an attempted coup to overthrow our government. It can’t be called anything else. It had leaders, it had planning, it had weapons, and it had organization. They were planning to take hostages. Can you believe that? This is how elections are carried out in “banana republics” as former President George W. Bush said, not the United States of America. They desecrated one of the most sacred buildings in our country. So far, six people have lost their lives because of this uprising, two of which were police officers trying to defend our Capitol Building.

They were incited and egged on by our former President Donald Trump. This is how dictators in third world countries become president for life. He called them “great patriots,” he told them that he loved them and that he would march with them. Guess what? He didn’t march with them! In true spoiled rotten, rich kid fashion, he stirred the pot up, got somebody else to do his fighting for him, and ducked back into the safety of the White House. He has steadfastly refused to denounce these militia units and white supremacy cults throughout his presidency. We now know the reason why.

All participants should be identified and punished according to the extent of their involvement, all the way up to the organizers and leaders and the ones who committed acts of violence should be charged with treason against the United States.

Nat Brown and John Turner, who started uprisings against the United States, prior to the Civil War were tried and convicted and summarily hanged for their offences. The same should apply in this case. Anyone of them who crossed the barricades and entered restricted areas, committed any acts of violence or vandalism should be ordered to make restitution to pay for their damages.

The police officers who backed away and opened the barricades for the rebels to pass through and the officer who posed for a “selfie” with the invaders should be charged with cowardice and desertion of their posts.

I feel somewhat vindicated, at this point, more and more people are publically referring to Trump’s mental state. I have been openly making reference to his obvious manic tendencies for over three years. Anyone who conducts business at 3 o’clock in the morning via Twitter is not in a sound frame of mind. You really should not try to run a government like a game show.

The sad thing is, we asked for it. Everyone knew his lack of moral character. We knew in our hearts he was not qualified to do the job. The Republicans among us, myself included, voted for him four years ago. He’s a shrewd businessman, we thought. The economy will boom, we thought. We have too many checks and balances, what can he screw up? Especially, with a vice president with the experience of Mike Pence to advice him. Ha! Boy! Did we get that wrong!

During the presidential debates there were several candidates who were more qualified and experienced but he bullied and brow beat all off them into submission. The Republican Party gave him the nomination based not on his abilities; but on their need to have a candidate that could win. That overruled their desire to do what was right for the country. Then they kowtowed to him which only acted to feed his narcissism, as we all witnessed in the end as his world unraveled around him. I lay more of the blame for this on them, they created the monster

Our political process will be in disarray for many years to come. The Republican Party is broken. It may not be able to rebuild itself. If it can come back from this it will have to do so without me.

I am changing my affiliation to the Democratic Party. I have become so disgusted with what I saw coming about for over a year, with the goings on in the Republican Party and Trump, especially after this last election, I cannot be party to it anymore. From Lindsey Graham, to Mitch McConnell, Glenn Thompson, Mike Kelley, the old school dinosaurs of the party, but especially Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, the Republican Party needs a complete shakeup from top to bottom.

Cruz and Hawley had their own agendas they were pursuing, but Trump had the majority of the Republican Party eating out of his hand. Following Trump’s hands-off non-leadership style, they have consistently refused to stand up to the NRA and these militant groups. Where did that get us?

The answer to that is, it got us Jan. 6! The NRA defends the rights of these home-grown terrorists to own whatever type of armament that they claim is their right to own. The Republican Party follows suit so that these malcontents will be in their voter base. All the while these radicals openly profess to start a civil war to overthrow our government. Don’t they realize the level of freedoms they enjoy here are unlike anywhere else in the world. They reward our quiet acceptance of their deviant mindsets by professing to take over our country. Their first real attempt, not withstanding their takeover of Michigan’s Capital Building, has failed. Will their next one fail, also? Rest assured its coming.

All of the legislators who fed Trump’s mania to overthrow the election results need to be purged. If they can’t be driven from office then we need to remember when it comes time for their next election. They all need to brush up their resumes because they are going to be looking for new employment.

Instead of “Remember the Alamo “or “Remember the Maine” our new national rallying call needs to be “Remember the Capitol Building”.

James E. Schrader is a Bear Lake resident.