Article: Republicans block investigation into January 6 attack

Such comments are not only reactionary, they are a diversion from the central issue posed by the January 6 events. The fascist attack on Congress was an attempt to overturn the 2020 election, in which 81 million people voted for Biden, and to keep Donald Trump in the White House as a dictator in all but name.

While spearheaded by fascist groups like the Proud Boys, the attack was only possible because of a systematic stand-down by the massive military and police apparatus that surrounds the seat of the American government, including tens of thousands of National Guard and Army troops. One of the most critical aspects of the coup attempt was the deliberate delay in the deployment of these forces to the Capitol, despite appeals by congressional leaders and even Vice President Mike Pence that they be mobilized.

A critical role was played by Trump's appointees at the Pentagon, acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller and Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, who controlled the activities of the D.C. National Guard and for three hours and 19 minutes (199 minutes) rebuffed pleas from the Guard commander, General William Walker, that he be allowed to send his troops to rescue those besieged in the Capitol.

In a statement published March 5, 2021, the WSWS explained:

"The events of January 6 were far from a surprise. For months prior to the insurrection, there was an ongoing political crisis during which the president of the United States made clear that he would not accept the peaceful transfer of power. The intelligence agencies and military were well aware of the plans and threats targeting the date of January 6, in particular.

"Rather, a decision was made not to act as a definite political strategy was implemented. For more than three hours, the fascistic groups had virtual free rein over the Capitol building. The militarily trained elements within the rioters knew that they were being given time to seek out hostages among the Senators and Representatives."

In that event, Trump would have declared a state of emergency, shut down Congress, delayed indefinitely the certification of Biden's victory, and opened negotiations that would have resulted, in one form or another, in a Democratic capitulation to the continuation of his presidency. The military only stepped in and secured the Capitol after it became clear that the attack had failed to achieve its objectives and Trump had publicly called it off.

The WSWS statement drew the following conclusion:

"No investigation carried out under the auspices of the Democratic Party will serve to expose the forces involved in the conspiracy. As a party of Wall Street and the military itself, the Democrats are terrified of the political and social consequences of the revelations.

"The one hundred and ninety-nine minutes of January 6 are a warning. As serious as the event was itself, no less significant is the response. Democratic rights cannot be entrusted to any faction of the ruling class or its political representatives. The working class cannot be left unprepared for the next stage. It must organize itself independently, on the basis of its own program, in opposition to the capitalist system."

The impending demise of the Democrats' political fig leaf of a bipartisan commission into January 6 only further vindicates this assessment.