The tea party 'protests' in 2009 were the prerequisite to the Capitol riot

[Proud liberal 80]

Remember in the summer of 2009 when ‘concerned’ citizens were showing up to Congress men and women town halls to voice their concerns...in reality they were being disruptive and had no real grievances...I remember seeing those images of angry people frothing at the mouth... These Tea Party supporters (and the MAGA successors, which are the same damn people) were portrayed by the MSM as good Americans who were just concerned about what was going on in the country....that they had been left behind and had lost blue collar jobs and economic security and were worried about the future...but in reality they are really middle class to upper middle class who are able afford boats, big trucks, a lot of guns, have health care, and jobs....their concern is fake, in reality they don’t like ‘the other’....they think they are the only ones who should be able to vote, protest, receive health care, and have a good job and house...‘the other’ should just be happy that we have the privilege to live in America

[North Shore Chicago]

1. There is a great deal of truth

in what you wrote. I recall my conservative dad telling me he "was going to a party" in D.C. I said "what?!"

Thank goodness that idea fizzled out quickly. Instead, he wrote another check to the RNC.

[apnu]

2. The 'Tea Party' is QAnon.

Originally astroturf from the Koch Brothers, it was a libertarian attempt to take over the Republican party. They riled up the right-wing cranks to be foot soldiers. Then David Koch became ill and died in 2019. During his illness the brothers had been withdrawing from that project, but the cranks remained riled up and went looking for new guide posts. Along comes QAnon telling them what they want to hear and gave them focus.

Along that whole ride are the neo-nazis and similar groups being tolerated in these ranks. They gave the movement energy the old and fat cranks could not.

The climax of all that was a mob of the insane giving cover for literal nazis assaulting our Capitol.

[CanonRay]

3. How the hell can people stay that angry for 12 years ffs.

[dalton99a]

4. And the Brooks Brothers riot in 2000

[Atticus]

5. We were counter-protesters in DC that year and had face-to-face "discussions" with several

Baggers.

From the two well-dressed couples on a corner calling President Obama a "mongrel" to the 300 pound illiterate know-it-all with VERY bad breath on the Metro ("We all know Soros is paying you counter-protesters!), they all had one thing in common: they were not prepared to deal with someone who would openly call out their racist bullshit and some actually said that "I" had offended "THEM" by disagreeing with them out loud.

That pleased me immensely.