I still find it interesting the J6 committee never really focused in on the Willard Hotel.

[markodochartaigh]

57. "Trump is hurting the GOP brand"

In 2015 the Republicans were going to have a brokered convention rather than pick Trump. But he was so wildly popular among the 80% of authoritarian Republicans that the 20% of corporate Republicans realized that they could not win without him. So the corporate Republicans put party before country and picked Trump even though they knew that choosing an authoritarian leader with such a huge following would likely lead to the end of whatever pretense the US had to democracy since neither authoritarian leaders nor authoritarian followers are committed to democracy. Amazingly there were some corporate Republicans who refused to go along with this, the Bushes, the Cheneys, etc. But the majority of corporate Republicans decided to roast the goose that laid the golden eggs and party with their authoritarian base immediately.

The corporate Republicans didn't want Trump then and they don't want him now, but it is extremely difficult to remove a tumor that comprises 80% of their body politic and not kill their party outright.

The unpleasant fact is that for a democracy to function there must be at least two viable parties committed to democracy. Otherwise the one party which is committed to democracy will be doomed the first time that the authoritarian party gets control. Unless and until the 20% of corporate Republicans can re-take their party, or form a new, viable party, democracy in the US will be a single election away from destruction.

And it is ironic that in a country described by everyone from Professor Chomsky to President Carter as an oligarchy, the oligarchs are not named. Ignorance is the first step toward fascism and the last step leaving democracy.