You’ve been taking off your shoes in airport security and giving up your liberties for 20 years, and then terrorists just barge into your Capitol, take over the place, and walk out, free? One of the biggest stories of 2021 will be what the hell happened to enable this; especially following the show of force—troops, tear gas, helicopters, the sec of defense, the commander in chief, and the chairman of the joint chiefs in camo—during the unprovoked attack on peaceful protesters in Lafayette Square. Capitol Police Chief Steven A. Sund, House Sergeant at Arms Paul D. Irving, and Senate Sergeant at Arms Michael C. Stenger have all resigned. But there’s little chance the buck stops there. “‘You didn’t need intelligence. You just needed to read the newspaper,’ said Michael Chertoff, who served as Homeland Security secretary from 2005 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. ‘They were advertising, ‘Let’s go wild. Bring your guns.’ You don’t need to have an FBI investigation. You just need to be able to be able to read.'” WaPo: How the U.S. Capitol Police were overrun in a ‘monumental’ security failure.

+ Maryland Governor Larry Hogan describes how he was standing by with national guard troops, and standing by, and standing by. It took an hour and a half for the federal government to give Hogan authorization to send help. (Remember that the Pentagon’s top echelon had been filled with lackeys appointed by the Inciter in Chief over the past few weeks.)

+ AP: Capitol Police rejected offers of federal help to quell mob.

+ And while we failed to protect the Capitol, America’s allies were shocked, and its enemies were gloating. Robin Wright in The New Yorker: The World Shook as America Raged.

+ “The U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that Officer Brian D. Sicknick was injured ‘while physically engaging with protesters‘ during the Wednesday riot. He is the fifth person to die because of the Capitol protest and violence.”

+ The man seen in viral photograph at Nancy Pelosi’s desk has been arrested. (Do me a favor. Find and arrest this dude. Warning, highly appropriate swear words ahead.)