In a short but scathing Saturday op-ed, The New York Post editorial board has said there “is no defense” for Donald Trump’s “refusal to stop the violence” on Jan. 6, adding that the former president “has proven himself unworthy to be this country’s chief executive again.”
The 262-word piece in the Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid cuts through the many layers of information brought to the surface by the Jan. 6 committee and gets right to the point, as they see it: Trump’s lack of action as he “sat in his private dining room, watching TV, doing nothing” for “three hours, seven minutes” while the US Capitol was stormed by his followers was “incitement by silence.”
“There has been much debate over whether Trump’s rally speech on Jan. 6, 2021, constituted ‘incitement,’” the editorial staff wrote. “That’s somewhat of a red herring. What matters more — and has become crystal clear in recent days — is that Trump didn’t lift a finger to stop the violence that followed.”
The outlet noted that Trump was the only person who could have stopped what was happening because he was the only one the crowd was listening to.
“It was incitement by silence,” The Post wrote. “Trump only wanted one thing during that infamous afternoon: to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to decertify the election of Joe Biden. He thought the violence of his loyal followers would make Pence crack, or delay the vote altogether.”
Yet, while he was being advised by aides, advisers and even family to tell the out-of-control crowd to go home, Trump instead “further fanned the flames” by condemning Mike Pence for not overturning the election results.
“His only focus was to find any means — damn the consequences — to block the peaceful transfer of power,” the outlet wrote. “There is no other explanation, just as there is no defense, for his refusal to stop the violence.”
It concluded: “It’s up to the Justice Department to decide if this is a crime. But as a matter of principle, as a matter of character, Trump has proven himself unworthy to be this country’s chief executive again.”
You can read the entire op-ed by clicking here.
