people focus way too much on intent, e.g., whether or not donnie meant to incite a riot

[gratuitous]

9. Luckily we have the testimony of the rioters

In real time, I recall reporters talking to the rioters as they went up Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol Building that a lot of them thought Trump was walking up the street with them, maybe even leading the charge. It's understandable why some of them would think that, since Trump himself said he'd march with them on the Capital just minutes before. There's an indisputable bright line from Trump's speech stirring up the crowd and the crowd's actions directly afterwards.

And that doesn't even touch on some of the other inflammatory rhetoric that day, like Giuliani thundering "Why don't we have trial by combat?!" Judging by the immediate reaction of the crowd, they weren't parsing the statements for nuance or metaphorical meanings. They heard clear orders from their heroes, and they acted on those orders.