Flashback: Nancy Pelosi praised unionists storming Wisconsin State Capitol
By: Yael Halon (Fox News)
The Democrat's insurrection never happened. Fake news.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has gone on record praising the storming of the Capitol as an "impressive show of democracy in action" -- the 2011 invasion of the Madison, Wis., state capitol, that is.
Pelosi's previous comment's resurfaced following the disturbing assault on the U.S. Capitol earlier this month at the hands of a right wing-mob who stormed the halls of Congress hoping to prevent the certification of the U.S. presidential election.
The assault drew forceful condemnations from both sides of the political aisle -- including Pelosi -- who wasted little time introducing former President Trump's second impeachment in the House for "inciting" the violence.
Ten years earlier, unionists stormed the Wisconsin State Capitol in an attempt to block a vote on collective bargaining reform. Thousands of demonstrators managed to enter the building by violently breaking down doors and shattering windows -- but the attack garnered much praise from Pelosi and other prominent Democrats at the time.
The occupiers were praised publicly by Pelosi for their "impressive show of democracy in action." The House Speaker took to Twitter to express her "solidarity" with the activists as they attacked the Capitol, and sent senators into hiding until police managed to remove them from the building.
Fox News contributor Mark Thiessen highlighted Pelosi's previous remarks in a column for the Washington Post earlier this month, observing that "in other words, Democrats were for occupying capitols before they were against it."
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The insurrectionists stormed the Wisconsin Capitol peacefully. Nancy Pelosi said so.
WHATABOUTism it ?
Typical. Remember after Charlottesville, suddenly ANTIFA became the mantra for the right wing.
HYPOCRISYism
Nope - it's deflection. Rather weak deflection at that.
[deleted]
Blatantly false statement but what else would we expect from Fox?
Wisconsin's capital was occupied for a month. Total cost of for physical damage was $ 270,000.00
Total expenses with overtime was 8 million.
The national embarrassment of 01/06/21 is currently at $518 million in physical damage, deaths, 140 police injuries and ongoing security,
and increasing.
There is little comparison
The comparison (and contrast) is how Nancy Pelosi and the political left reacted to the two events. Nancy Pelosi celebrated the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol. The contrast reveals the political left's hypocritical pretense for political expediency.
Donald Trump is being impeached for using incendiary language in a political speech addressing protesters. The argument is that Trump bears responsibility for the unrest and violence because of his incendiary language. That's a reasonable basis for arguing that those using incendiary language should be held accountable.
But that standard does not apply to only Donald Trump. Any speaker using incendiary language bears responsibility for ensuing unrest and violence. And any speaker using incendiary language should be held accountable for protests becoming violent.
However, what has transpired reveals that the political left's argument is really nothing more than hypocritical pretense to obtain political advantage. The political left is only using the argument to attack a political opponent. The standard is only being applied to Donald Trump while those on the political left are encouraged to use incendiary language to motivate protest into action that has been far from peaceful.
Pelosi celebrated a peaceful protest by supporting the tens of thousands, at one point 100,000 union workers about to lose some negotiating rights they have had since 1930.
They peacefully occupied the Wisconsin capital for a month watching that legislative cancel many of their bargaining rights.
As for the rest of your "hypocritical pretense" bs,
Pelosi would have been forced to resign as Speaker if not from the House altogether
if she had acted as Trump has.
The Wisconsin Capitol wasn't "stormed". The protestors occupied the public spaces, and even worked with the police to remain lawful. Very few people were arrested for unlawful actions. Only 16 out of the 1.5 million or so who showed up over the course of a month.
Also, the Wisconsin protests were about Gov Walker taking away workers' rights. Nobody was there to overthrow the Republic and forcefully install a lying tyrant.
This only fake news here is this seed. You're spreading Fox News propaganda, Nerm. This is exactly the kind of intentionally twisted bullshit that has led to such a wide divide in the country.
The following is an article from a local station in Madison:
‘Absolutely no similarity’: Leaders explain difference between Act 10 protests & Capitol insurrection
Excerpts from the article...
Let's review...
An almost entirely peaceful and lawful protest in public spaces (cooperation with police, and no ransacking of lawmakers' offices or house chambers), against a government that was actively trying to take rights away — compared to a violent and completely treasonous attack on the U.S. Capitol, with the aim of stopping the congressional proceedings to affirm Biden's Electoral College win, and to coerce Pence into naming Trump the winner instead.
It's not even apples and oranges.
How can you work with police to lawfully do an illegal thing?
What evidence do you have that protestors being in the Wisconsin Capitol was illegal?
It's easy, just admit you have no evidence that it was illegal...
As once a democrat, then a republican, now I'm quite happy being a registered independent.
And SHIT like this from people of both parties is My why.
But it is a different kind of story when she gets scared and looks bad
Yeah, that's the reason it's different...
Republicans, at the time, said the occupying of the Wisconsin state house was wrong. Republicans today have condemned the storming of our nation's Capitol building. It was wrong then and it was wrong now. At least for some people.
There didn't appear to be many Democrats storming the Capital - lot's of trump flags and hats though.
How much damage was done in Wisconsin? Fatalities and injuries?
Seems like a weak comparison...
That's irrelevant to the comparison. Republicans condemned both incidents. Democrats only condemned one. They cheered on the other one.
It's a lot easier to avoid damage and injuries when you just let the protestors inside. Same with the police precinct in Seattle. Cops fled.
Then perhaps you haven't thought it through with an open mind.
And that's where you lose the argument. The GoP is no friend of unions, they were ramming through a bill restricting collective bargaining, they were going to condemn the protests regardless of the location. Of Course Democrats support the unions and supported the peaceful protests throughout Wisconsin. The fire fighters union was pissed, the police assigned to protect the Wisconsin Capital were pissed and stopped no one from entering.
Slightly different than the lawlessness we saw on 01/06/21 rightfully condemned by everyone.
I don't see how it should matter whether or not anyone agrees with the protestors.
In Wisconsin, no elected officials were forced to flee or hide.
They conducted business without fearing for their safety.
Protesters occupied different parts of the Wisconsin Capital for almost a month.
Total cost for cleaning and overtime was $270,000.
Total cost to the national Capital is currently at $518 Million and rising in repairs,
cost of loss of life, 140 police injuries and continued security.
There really is no comparison.
Wait WHAT? The seed says;
Seems to be a contradiction there. Which is true?
Then the Republicans condemning both is irrelevant.
What contradiction? You don’t have to break down an unlocked, open door. You just walk throught it.
Doesn’t change what I said.
Who said anything about letting him get away with something?
o elected officials were forced to flee or hide.
An Account of the Wisconsin insurrection:
The police retreated in the face of the horde, giving up the first floor, then the second. “The protesters ran amok, chanting ‘This is our house!’ and ‘This is what democracy looks like!’ ” we wrote. “And they then began searching for the Republican senators who had dared to defy the will of the unions.” As the crowd scoured the building looking for the offending legislators, police sneaked them out through an underground tunnel to a government building across the street. But a Democratic representative posted on social media that the Republican senators were escaping through the tunnels, so when the senators came up into the lobby, the mob was there waiting for them.
“The tall windows that framed the lobby were plastered with people yelling and banging on the glass,” we wrote. “They were trapped. The senators hid under a stairwell, out of view, while the police ordered a city bus to pull up in front of the building. Officers then formed a human wall on the sidewalk, parting the sea of protesters and creating a pathway for the senators to reach the bus.” Once the senators were on board, “the mob on the street began punching the windows and shaking the vehicle. … The police told the senators and staff inside to keep their heads down in case a window shattered.”
So the seed's claim is a lie.
Thanks, good article.
Everyone was frightened that first day and then they got back to business.
Selective memory by the author perhaps, as Act 10 passed mid occupation after 60 hours of debate 02/25/11.
Last line of the article...
No, the word you need is “consistent.”
I don't see how that should matter.
WOW!
That scene looks pretty similar to what happened in DC
Except for the lack of flags, tear gas, smoke, riot police, Qanon or Trump hats etc., Confederate flags...
The union people were much better behaved and stayed for almost a month while bills were passed that restricted their collective bargaining rights.
Really? The Capitol Police parted the sea of Trump insurrectionists so the Congressman and Senators could go safely to their offices? I must have missed the video of that happening Greg. /s
Hopefully, Not a sad truth.
Here is an article that pretty much debunks everything in the seeded article.
Nothing there about the protesters in Wisconsin breaking doors and windows to get in, and they were there for weeks. If it was such a violent destructive insurrection in Madison how come the National Guard wasnt called in to remove them? The state government actually co-operated with the Wisconsin protesters to a certain extent.
I'll add a few more if you don't mind...
Some are comparing the U.S. Capitol riot to Wisconsin's Act 10 protests in 2011. Here are the key differences.
‘Absolutely no similarity’: Leaders explain difference between Act 10 protests & Capitol insurrection
Why Wisconsin's Act 10 Protests And U.S. Capitol Insurrection Shouldn't Be Compared
No need to break anything if you just let them in.
That's what happens when the government makes no attempt to get them to leave.
Maybe the federal government should have cooperated with the protestors in DC. Maybe they'd still be there. Just like Madison. Just like Seattle. Then we could all sit back and wax nostalgic about how wonderful protests are the way so many did in those other incidents.
So you agree that the seeded article makes false and inappropriate comparisons. OK.
So, no. Honestly, I'm not worried about the article. I'm just comparing the events and the reactions, which I see as the overall topic.
To compare the events, one must acknowledge that the seed misrepresents [lies about] the Wisconsin protest.
Fox should re-evaluate the word "storming" in the title.
Oh goody, a dead dogs chasing parked cars race ... @!@
False equivalence is the overarching defense of the right.
It is a weak defense to claim 'but they did it first'. First of all the circumstances are different. Trump held the office of PotUS with all the power of influence that comes with it. That puts him on a scale above any other politician (by far). Second, it does not matter if someone else did something bad. The bad deeds of others do not make the bad deeds of Trump go away or lessen.
Not a good defense at all.
The seed presents a contrast; not a defense. Nancy Pelosi celebrated the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol.
The contrast presented in the seed allows the more liberal minded to demonstrate that their critical moralizing has really been nothing more than hypocritical pretense.
Yes, the two events also provide contrasts in the response by law enforcement. The liberal minded have been critically moralizing over the role of law enforcement in escalating protest into riot. Liberals have claimed that law enforcement assuming an adversarial and confrontational response to protests is a cause for escalating violence. During the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol, law enforcement retreated and allowed the protesters to occupy the Capitol building without confrontation.
According to past liberal arguments, law enforcement adopting an adversarial and confrontational posture contributed to the violence during the storming of the US Capitol. But now liberals claim that the Capitol Police should have done more to confront the protesters. Liberals have revealed that their past critical moralizing was really nothing more than hypocritical pretense for political expediency.
But the targets of both protests were the legislature at both the Wisconsin Capitol and the US Capitol.
Claiming that Trump contributed to the protest becoming violent with incendiary language is a fair argument. But that standard should apply to any speaker utilizing incendiary language to spur followers into action.
Liberals can't give a pass to their own incendiary speakers with moral justifications because liberals have demonstrated their critical moralizing is really nothing more than hypocritical pretense used for political expediency.
The contrasts between the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol and the US Capitol have provided an opportunity for liberals to reveal they have been lying all along.
This seed equates the insurrection on the Capitol incited by Trump (as PotUS) with the approval statement of Pelosi regarding the 2011 extended protest at the Wisconsin state capitol.
The comparisons are poor given months of incitement by Trump who held the office of PotUS which resulted in a violent attack on our Capitol in a misguided attempt to steal the presidency by disrupting a joint session of Congress vs. cheerleading by the Speaker of the House over the largely peaceful protesting of actions by a governor.
This seed is spin. It is yet another dishonest attempt to generate fact from fiction in order to rationalize that insurrection and thus Trump's offenses.
Nancy Pelosi celebrated one event and condemned the other. Why?
That's what the press does best. The facts are that Nancy Pelosi celebrated the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol while condemning the storming of the US Capitol. Those are verifiable facts.
Attempting to use fact checking to gloss over the core facts of Nancy Pelosi's hypocritical pretense is nothing more than spin, too.
It is absurd to deem rejection of spin as spin.
Really Nerm? I watched the whole fucking thing and never saw Capital Police 'adopting an adversarial and confrontational posture'. Defending a perimeter around a restricted building and denying entry into that building isn't 'adversarial and confrontational'.
The only group that was 'adversarial and confrontational' were the insurrectionists. PERIOD, full stop.
Your posit is a failure.
Weapons aimed at protesters would seem to be a little confrontational.
Give me a link of weapons being pointed at 'protestors' Nerm.
Oh and BTW, once they stepped inside of the restricted perimeter, they became criminals. The Capitol Police confronted CRIMINALS and it's a tribute to restraint that MORE of those CRIMINALS weren't shot.
Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham called Democrats' presentation "hypocritical." He also showed anger at the video footage and said the Capitol Police had the right to use deadly force on rioters.
"I got mad. I mean, these police officers had every right to use deadly force. They should have used it," he told reporters on Capitol Hill. "The people in charge of securing the Capitol let the country down."
False equivalencies are false (a lie) on their faces!
Are you suggesting that the political left's reaction to the storming of the Wisconsin Capitol compared to the political left's reaction to the storming of the US Capitol constitutes fake news?
A false equivalency has nothing to do with fake news Nerm.