Readers Write: How to stop spread of GOP lies

The Island Now

If you tell a lie and repeat it enough times, chances are it will be believed.

The following were some of the lies that Republicans said about the attack on the Capitol Building on Jan. 6.

The crowds looked like a “normal tourist visit.”

Some Republicans even said that “these Trump supporters or peaceful patriots were needlessly harassed by law enforcement officials.”

“This so-called insurrection was nothing more than a show of patriotism.”

The insurrection was a “bold-faced lie”.

Some also contended that the House floor was not breached and that supporters of former President Donald Trump who stormed the Capitol behaved in an orderly fashion even though many of them were prepared for battle wearing helmets and tactical gear, carrying weapons and other weapons.

A proposed bipartisan plan to investigate the Capitol insurrection passed in the House, but GOP Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and his Republican senators opposed it. The Republicans fear such an independent inquiry into the attack on the Capitol will hurt the party’s image and see it as a threat to their push to regain control of the Senate and the House.

Polls have shown that there are many Republican voters who believe all these lies.

Question: How can we effectively deal with the spreading of such lies? The answer is so obvious, but it has been completely overlooked.

To ensure that the truth is believed, we must do what the Republicans do with the lies—simply repeat the truth enough times and with believable evidence, facts that can be seen as strong especially with their own eyes.

Where and when can we show the mob storming of the Capitol that injured 140 Capital Police officers and left one dead with many of the congressional representatives fearing for their lives? Videos are the answer. There are so many of them. Where should they be shown?

First of all, since members of Congress were under attack, talks should be given to them by law enforcement professionals advising on how best to protect themselves, aided by the viewing of videos of the attacks during the insurrection. These videos should be shown before every congressional session in both the Senate and the House, as ordered by the Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to ensure that the major news outlets report on it every day.

Television commercials should be prepared by the Democratic Party showing those same videos, including comments by notable Republicans, such as the one by Senator Mitch McConnell who publicly stated that “the mob attack on the Capitol was provoked by Trump.”

It should also be emphasized that the Republican Party has constantly told us that they are the party that supports our police, the men in blue. But after the deadly attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters, which left one Capitol Police Officer dead and 140 police officers injured, they should more appropriately be called the “Black and Blue” party.

The truth must prevail, but it can only happen when the events that occurred on Jan. 6 are investigated by a bipartisan, independent committee.

Alvin Goldberg

Great Neck

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