My rage has not abated, it has grown. I worked on the Hill on 9/11 & when 2 police officers were tragically killed by a madman with a gun--surprise attacks that lead to dramatic security increases. BILLIONS have been spent to protect OUR house-the people's house. And yet...1/

This attack--planned in plain site by a bunch of morons who had merch!--was carried out with little resistance. Think about it, the seditious mob brought and built a gallows and platform with 6x6 beams at OUR capitol. This required some planning. 2/

https://t.co/28i2Z71deE
They had ladders! Are you telling me they walked up with ladders and no one thought, "uh oh, shit's getting real?"

📷 Eric Lee/Bloomberg/Getty Images 3/
They had zip ties and flex cuffs to handcuff people! Who were they planning to take hostage and thank god they were not successful. 4/
The had SLEDGEHAMMERS??? 5/
https://t.co/MmLVHWURzQ
I have been to every kind of protest you can imagine in DC-its part of DC life-#climatechange, women's rights, gun control, and nobody ever brought a ladder to storm the Capitol. In fact, nobody ever tried to storm the Capitol at all. Nobody.

📷Bryan Woolston / Reuters 6/
Hell, I even went to the first Million Man March in 1995, when a million BLACK men came to DC. Guess what?
NOBODY had a ladder or a sledgehammer or zip ties and nobody tried to stage an invasion. If they had, we all know what would have happened. 7/

https://t.co/p7KsaLacJR
Meanwhile, my former colleagues had to evacuate with their hands up. Staff literally running for safety from white seditionists. Those I have talked to continue to process fear, rage, and sadness. This trauma is real.

📷Amanda Voisard/For The Washington Post/Getty Images 8/

More from Legal

THREAD: Okay. I'm about to get SUPER space beans tin foil hat on you, so stop reading if you're not into that. Based on what we're learning from public reporting, the pentagon curtailed the response to the trump coup. 1/

We also know from video and public reporting that there were two groups that stormed the capitol. 1) weird-ass bystanders and 2) possibly armed ex-military members with tactical gear and flex cuffs 2/


We also know there was a failed coup attempt in Venezuela orchestrated by Giuliani and former members of Blackwater, an Erik Prince joint. 3/

We also know that Giuliani met with Brian Benczkowski and Bill Barr to lobby for for help to go easy on his Venezuelan pal. Benczkowski is a former Alfa Bank rep. 4/

Further, we know that Erik Prince is the brother of Betsy DeVos (who JUST resigned) and the former head of Blackwater. We also know that the day before the insurrection, a memo was sent out to knee-cap the federal police in DC. 5/
A detention hearing is about to start in federal court in Arkansas in the case of Richard Barnett, the man photographed sitting in Nancy Pelosi's office (see: https://t.co/GAAENhkxf0). He's been in custody since his arrest

Prosecutors alleged Barnett was carrying a stun gun. He's charged with entering a restricted area w/ a weapon, violent entry/disorderly conduct, and theft. There isn't anything on the docket indicating what the govt/Barnett will be seeking as far as detention v. release


We're still waiting for the Richard Barnett detention hearing to start in Arkansas. Meanwhile, follow @o_ema for updates on initial appearances in DC federal court today for a few of the Capitol insurrection arrestees -->


Richard Barnett's detention hearing is underway in Arkansas — Judge Erin Wiedemann will decide if Barnett should stay behind bars. The first witness is FBI special agent Jonathan Willett, who was involved in the Capitol riot investigation

FBI agent walks the judge through surveillance videos that the agent says show Barnett walking in and out of Nancy Pelosi's office, with a "walking stick Taser" on his hip, as well as the widely disseminated photos of Barnett sitting in Pelosi's chair with his feet up

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