Frederica Freyberg:

Turning to an anniversary marked this week, January 6, 2021. Shocking scenes as Donald Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol looking to overturn the election. Hundreds have been charged in connection with the breach, including six from Wisconsin. Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin spoke from the Senate floor now a year later.

Tammy Baldwin:

Far too many would like to whitewash the violent day and pretend the insurrection was not an existential threat to our democracy. We have colleagues who have inexplicably and falsely said the violent mob was a group of mere tourists. My Republican counterpart from the great state of Wisconsin even called January 6th a peaceful protest. These fly in the face of the truth. This is not right and we cannot allow the truth to be buried. We must all condemn this insurrection in no uncertain terms as well as the Big Lie about the 2020 election that drove the mob to desecrate this hallowed chamber. And we must honor and strengthen our democracy by passing legislation that puts an end to these ceaseless attacks on voters and the integrity of our elections.

Frederica Freyberg:

For his part, Republican Senator Ron Johnson’s office put out a statement that reads in part, “Senator Johnson immediately and repeatedly condemned the violence that occurred on January 6. He believes the American people deserve a full and accurate account of what happened.” He also detailed the questions he’s raised about just who was involved citing agent provocateurs and fake Trump supporters. Wisconsin U.S. Representative Scott Fitzgerald also reacted to the anniversary and the president’s speech marking the occasion. He tweeted out, “The President created more division, not unity, in his speech today. The V. P. shamelessly likened January 6th to September 11th and Pearl Harbor – both attacks that left thousands of Americans murdered. This isn’t leadership,” he said. “This is theater to distract from this administration’s failures.”