Seething Rage.
(image courtesy Scissorhead MonkeyFister)

Rep. Benny Thompson:

“This morning we will tell the story of how Donald Trump lost an election. And knew he lost an election. And as the result of his loss, decided to wage an attack on our democracy.”

And with that, they were off and running.

The Red Mirage played a starring role early in proceedings, when key advisers, such as Barr and Stepien, acknowledged that everyone in the 2020 Goat Rodeo campaign knew the early election night returns would be positive for Hair Füror, but the it would change as mail ballots were counted in the days to follow. Chris Stirewalt, who was heading the Fox News decision desk election night, testified that the chances of Trump winning in the coming days were basically none.

2020 Goat Rodeo Campaign Manager Bill Stepien testified two camps of advisers had emerged: Team Rudy that made wack-o  piles of fraud lies, and another which he characterized as Team Normal, the implication being that Rudy’s team was Team Abnormal? Sure, we’ll go with that.

There was a lot more testimony from Bill Barr, but the bit that got me is that Barr essentially said that Trump was delusional:

“If he really believes this stuff, he’s become detached from reality, if he really believes this stuff. There was never any interest in what the actual facts were.”

Towards the end, Lofgren devoted some time to detailing how Trump raised $250 million for an “Official Election Defense Fund” that didn’t actually exist, and Rep. Lofgren concluded that it was “The Big Rip-off” to match The Big Lie.

I’m not sure if they are going to pursue that line more, but it seems ripe for investigation.

The big take-away from today is that the story was being told by insiders and loyalists, this was not partisan at all. But the case that the Committee made (and it is damning) is that Trump knew he lost. There’s no way he could not know.

Tiger Beat:

The reality, as the committee detailed with testimony from people throughout Trump world, is that (1) Trump continued to lie about the outcome of the election even after being told over and over that he’d lost fair and square, and (2) every conspiracy theory about the election that was brought to the campaign was investigated and knocked down — even as those who debunked them were ignored or cast away.

Also from Tiger Beat:

POLL: VOTERS SUPPORT DOJ ACTION — In a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll, a majority of voters said they think the Justice Department should bring legal action against elected officials who have attempted to overturn the results of an election — a question that has cropped up in light of the hearings.

Do you believe that the Department of Justice should bring legal action against …

• … elected officials who have misled Americans about the outcome of an election: Sixty-three percent said “yes, probably” or “yes definitely,” while 26% said “no, probably not” or “no, definitely not.” Net approval: +37 

• … elected officials who have attempted to overturn the results of an American election: Sixty-seven percent said “yes,” 21% said “no.” Net approval: +46 

More from the poll:

How responsible do you believe each of the following are for the events that led to a group of people attacking police and breaking into the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6?

• The people who broke into the Capitol: Eighty-five percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 8% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: +77

• Social media: Sixty percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 28% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: +32

• The news media: Fifty-seven percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 31% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: +26

• Trump: Fifty-seven percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 34% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: +23 

• Congressional Republicans: Forty-nine percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 38% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: +11 
• Congressional Democrats: Thirty-three percent say “very” or “somewhat” responsible, and 53% say “not too” or “not” responsible. Net: -20