In the wake of the January 6th riot at the Capitol, 25,000 National Guard troops were dispatched to DC, presumably to establish order and protect the Government against other acts of insurrection.

Five weeks later, with nary a protestor in sight, 5000 troops remained stationed there, and will be through at least March.

People are wondering why.

The answer, from where I sit, is pretty simple: Political haymaking.

Here’s what the Democrats are going to do the next couple years.

• Keep the name Trump in the public spotlight as much as possible, no matter what he does or doesn’t do.

• Continue to press the idea that everyone who voted for Trump, and all Republican law makers, are complicit in and bear responsibility for the Capitol Riot.

This is a classic guilt-by-association gambit intended to scare voters away from supporting Republicans and Republican ideas, to continue to “wedge” between Trumpists and Trump-skeptical/Never-Trump conservatives, to deflect attention away from their legislative and executive agenda/actions, and to work toward keeping control of the government past the mid-term elections.

The second point is what the continued National Guard presence in DC is about. If there are troops there, motivated reasoners are encouraged to conclude, it’s because there’s a continued threat from the loony/Trumpy Right. The troops are meant to be proof of on-going peril and imminent insurrection, no matter that they’ve offered zero evidence in support. They’re there as a photo-op and reporting background for eager-to-spread-fear journalists, who can much more easily press the Democrats’ narrative with this visual “evidence.”

Political theater, with our fellow citizens used as extras and our tax dollars financing the production. And plans to carry this road show through the fall.

Don’t be surprised if the mask mandates carry on that long as well. Ranks of masked, faceless, uniformed soldiers lining the streets of our nation’s Capitol will continue to be presented as a response to an existential internal threat, whether there’s any proof of that threat or not.

The real threat, of course, is the passel of politicians being protected (from… nothing?) by those troops, who have grand plans to further undermine our rights, spend our money, tax us to oblivion, and impose their will on every detail of our lives.

What of the normal protection, the Capitol Police? Why not simply bolster their ranks if there’s a threat? Don’t underestimate the theatrical aspect of this all. It’s deliberate, and it’s intended to cow us into ever-greater complacency.

• About the Author

About Peter Venetoklis

I am twice-retired, a former rocket engineer and a former small business owner. At the very least, it makes for interesting party conversation. I'm also a life-long libertarian, I engage in an expanse of entertainments, and I squabble for sport.

Nowadays, I spend a good bit of my time arguing politics and editing this website.

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